


Meet the di Angelos

by Takara_Phoenix



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Families, Alternate Universe - No Gods, Anal, Bottom!Percy, Daddy!Hades, Established Nico/Jason, Explicit Sexual Content, Hades and Poseidon are a couple, Jason is kinda stuck between them xD, Light Bondage, M/M, Masturbation, Nico and Percy become kinda-stepbrothers, Oral, Past Child Abuse, Sex Toys, Shounen-ai, Slash, Threesome - M/M/M, Top!Nico, Whovian!Leo, Whovian!Percy, aka: Gabe is a bastard, and they raise their kids together, but all the naughty will only come later, seriously Hades is an awesome dad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-23
Updated: 2015-08-10
Packaged: 2018-02-22 07:20:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 87,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2499401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Takara_Phoenix/pseuds/Takara_Phoenix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hades had four children from three different women - Thanatos, Bianca, Nico and Hazel. All his previous relationships had ended one way or the other but never good. As a famous lawyer and single parent to four kids, he decides to hire a live-in nanny.<br/>Poseidon has two sons from two women - Triton and Tyson. But he's short on money, so he decides to become a live-in nanny for the di Angelos.<br/>Along the way, Poseidon and Hades fall in love and become a couple.<br/>Enter: Percy Ugliano, Poseidon's third kid who he had never gotten custody over since Sally wanted him all to herself. Now Sally is dead and there is no way in hell that Percy will be staying with his abusive stepfather.<br/>Percy only went to his biological father because he knew that Poseidon's boyfriend is a first-class lawyer. He wants to be declared an adult so he can live on his own. Hades demands for Percy to stay with them during the trial-period. Mainly so the Jackson di Angelos can convince Percy to stay forever.<br/>Only one problem: Percy's new not-quite-stepbrother Nico and Nico's boyfriend Jason are developing romantic feelings for the abused boy...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Ten Separate Lives, Linked

Title: Meet the di Angelos – Percy and his New Normal

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus; human AU

Disclaimer : All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for he created the awesomeness that is Nico di Angelo. And everything else related to Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus. Aside from the Gods, they belong to the old Greeks. This fanfiction and its OCs on the other hand are entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, alternate families, human AU, explicit intercourse, anal, oral, masturbation, toys, bondage, hurt/comfort, lots of family fluff, past abuse, shoujo-ai, hetero

Main Pairing: Nico/Jason/Percy

Side Pairings: Nico/Jason (established), Hades/Poseidon, Thanatos/Triton (one-sided?) Herakles/Triton, Frank/Hazel/Leo, Luke/Octavian, Ethan/Alabaster, Jake/Will, Reyna/Annabeth, Grover/Juniper, Chris/Clarisse, Charles/Silena, Malcolm/Katie, Shane/Lacy, Zeus/Hera, Demeter/Hestia, Ares/Emily, Tristan/Aphrodite, Howard/Hecate, Frederick/Athena, Hephaestus/Esperanza, Chiron/Lupa

Percy Jackson Characters:

 _ **Family di Angelo**_ : Hades di Angelo, Poseidon Jackson, Thanatos di Angelo, Triton Jackson, Bianca di Angelo, Nico di Angelo, Perseus Jackson, Hazel Levesque, Tyson Jackson, Mrs. O'Leary, Zerberus, Rainbow, Arion, Blackjack, Tempest, Scipio, Pegasus

 _ **Family Grace**_ : Zeus Grace, Hera Grace, Herakles Grace, Thalia Grace, Jason Grace

 _ **Family Chase**_ : Frederick Chase, Athena Chase, Annabeth Chase, Malcolm Chase

 _ **Family McLean**_ : Tristan McLean, Aphrodite Beauregard, Silena Beauregard, Piper McLean, Lacy McLean, Mitchell McLean, Gleeson Hedge, Mellie Underwood, Grover Underwood

 _ **Family Torrington**_ : Howard Claymore, Hecate Torrington, Circe Torrington, Alabaster Claymore Torrington, Lou Ellen Torrington

 _ **Family Gardner**_ : Demeter Gardner, Hestia Gardner, Persephone Gardner, Katie Gardner, Juniper Gardner, Miranda Gardner

 _ **Family Nightshade**_ : Artemis Nightshade, Zoe Nightshade, Phoebe Nightshade, Calypso Nightshade

 _ **Family Solace**_ : Apollo Solace, Will Solace, Kayla Solace, Austin Solace, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Ella Rebecca Dare

 _ **Family Zhang la Rue**_ : Ares Zhang la Rue, Emily Zhang la Rue, Clarisse Zhang la Rue, Frank Zhang la Rue, Hylla Avila Ramírez-Arellano, Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, Argentum, Aurum

 _ **Family Beckendorf**_ : Hephaestus Beckendorf, Esperanza Valdez, Charles Beckendorf, Jake Mason, Nyssa Valdez, Leo Valdez, Shane Beckendorf

 _ **Foster Family Castellan**_ : Hermes Castellan, Octavian Simmons, Luke Castellan, Travis Stoll, Connor Stoll, Drew Tanaka, Chris Rodriguez, Kinzie Cohen, Ethan Nakamura

 _ **School**_ : Chiron Brunner, Lupa Brunner, Paul Blofis, (other teachers: Howard, Frederick, Athena)

 _ **Barryville**_ : Hypnos, Iris, Butch Walker, Clovis (Walker), Dionysus, Dakota (Liber), Castor Liber, Pollux Liber, Sherman Potter, Mark Meyer, Michael Kahale, Christopher Clark, Harley Davis

Summary: Percy's mother died and he would have to stay with his stepfather Gabe. Which was not going to happen, not if he could prevent it. So he tracks down his biological father Poseidon to live with him instead. Poseidon is living with his lover Hades, his own two sons Triton and Tyson from previous relationships and Hades' children Thanatos, Bianca, Nico and Hazel. Aside from grieving his mother's death and recovering from his previous stepfather's abuse, Percy now has to adjust to a new school, new people and a new and complicated family. Suddenly he has not one but two fathers and a whole bunch of siblings. Things get a little weird when he starts developing feelings for the son of his father's boyfriend. But Nico is in a relationship with Jason.

 

**Meet the di Angelos**

_ Percy and his New Normal _

 

Chapter 1: Ten Separate Lives, Linked

 

/2005\

 

Hades di Angelo had never been lucky with his love-life.

His first wife had died in child-birth, leaving Hades alone with his firstborn son Thanatos.

His second wife was a beautiful woman he had met when he had turned to his roots in Italy. Living with Maria in Venice for a couple of years brought him his second child Bianca and his third child Nico. At least until Maria got hit by lightning. Devastated to have lost a second wife, Hades gathered his three children and returned to the US.

Where he met his third wife Marie in New Orleans. Sadly, theirs was only a short affair since he soon noticed that all she wanted was his wealth. He fought in court to keep their daughter Hazel.

With four children from three marriages, he decided to lay off the dating and focus on his family. So he settled down in a friendly suburb with a good school and friendly neighbors. Being a successful lawyer and a single father to four children was hard to handle, so he started looking for a nanny.

Which was harder than he thought it would be. There were so many creepy people out there who wanted to 'properly discipline' kids who misbehaved, who thought children should just be silent and out of sight. That was not what he wanted for his children. It had been days of searching and honestly, he was frustrated, staring at some legal documents when the door opened.

“Okay, if you had to describe yourself with one word, which one would that be?”, asked Hades.

He didn't even bother to look up. The last three he had seen had answered with 'disciplined', 'stern' and 'well-mannered'. Nothing he really wanted for his little darlings. He wanted someone who'd at least use the words 'fun', 'understanding' or 'compassionate'.

“Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”, was the rather unexpected answer.

That got Hades' attention and he looked up. What he saw was not what he had expected. Most babysitters had either been snotty-nosed teenagers trying to get a little income next to their pocket money – and he was _not_ hiring a child to watch his children – or old and bitter women. This one however was far more beautiful than anything he had seen since Maria's death. A man, a little younger than him, with wild, black hair and deep, sea-green eyes. He had the body of a swimmer, muscular and lean. He hadn't felt that attracted to a man since his college years when he had a brief affair with the man who had stolen his heart. Looking down at the application, he read the name. This was the man that had taken his heart all those years ago, before his parents had pushed him into his first marriage. Poseidon Jackson. But the other looked just as startled.

“I swear I had no idea it was you”, was the next thing out of Poseidon's mouth. “I just _really_ need a job and I thought you moved to Italy years ago...? Uhm. Hi.”

Hades continued to stare at Poseidon, especially since Poseidon wasn't alone. He had a teen at his hand who looked like his mini-me and a baby in his arms.

“I moved back to the US years ago”, corrected Hades, still staring. “Who are those?”

“Those are Triton and Tyson, my sons. Sorry, ironically enough I couldn't find a babysitter to come here for the job interview as a babysitter”, sighed Poseidon and sat down. “Say 'hello', Triton.”

“Hello”, said the teen with an annoyed glare. “Not like I'm thirteen and old enough to stay alone.”

“H—How have you been, Poseidon?”, asked Hades, feeling a little awkward.

“Well, after you left me and broke my heart to marry that... woman, I was a little desperate and stupid and thought I'd try being straight too. Which ended in three children, two of which are going to live with me”, replied Poseidon. “When one of my one-night-stands dumped Tyson at my doorstep, I figured I should get my life back on track. And with Triton, I noticed I'm pretty good with children, so when I read your add for a live-in nanny, I figured that would be something...”

“Okay”, nodded Hades, running one hand over his face. “So, supercalifragilisticexpialidocious?”

“Oh, I've been watching Mary Poppins with Tyson yesterday, since I'm applying as a nanny and I find it highly impossible to describe any person with just one word”, answered Poseidon.

It was mostly the charming smile that had made Hades agree and hire Poseidon. Also the two children he was carrying around. And the lingering feelings. For years, he had tried to get over his forceful separation from Poseidon who he had always considered the love of his life. Which most likely was the real reason why Hades agreed to hire Poseidon.

 

/break\

 

Thanatos di Angelo was the oldest di Angelo child. He was sixteen at the time and quite interested in the new guys moving into their mansion. But when his dad had said the new nanny and his two kids would be moving in, Thanatos had not expected the pretty, naked boy coming out of his shower when he himself had been on the way into said shower. He dropped his towel in surprise when the younger teen came out of the shower. Sun-kissed skin, a swimmer's body, messy, black hair and sea-green eyes as deep as the ocean itself. Those eyes were as large as humanly possible as the naked, wet boy stared at Thanatos like a deer caught by the hunter.

“Oh. Uhm. Hi?”, tried the stranger flustered.

“Towel?”, offered Thanatos, picking his towel up and handing it to the sea-green eyed boy.

Much to his charging, the pretty thing had decided to turn around in embarrassment. And that was one ass he was not going to forget any time soon. Which made him wonder, why that pretty and naked ass was in his room to begin with. Not that he was objecting to it.

“Care to tell why you're in my bathroom, bello?”, asked Thanatos curiously.

“Yeah, well, uhm, I just moved in here with my brother and my dad and I was looking for a bathroom. I found one. Guess it's yours”, mumbled the other even more embarrassed now. “Sorry, I guess you don't really want the staff's kids in your bathroom.”

“No!”, exclaimed Thanatos, not desiring to look like a spoiled, arrogant brat in front of the new local pretty boy. “Uhm, it's fine. My siblings are always all over the place, so feel free to use my bathroom if you want to. I mean, you live here now too, after all. I'm Thanatos, by the way.”

“Triton Jackson, nice to meet you”, grinned Triton and thrust his hand out.

“Yes, very nice”, agreed Thanatos, his eyes roaming Triton's naked body once more.

 

/break\

 

Hazel sat on the swing in their direct neighbor's garden, with the son of their neighbors pushing her. Their new nanny had been living with them for a couple of weeks now and Hazel couldn't be happier. Poseidon was nice to her and played with her. Currently, she had managed to bug Poseidon into playing tea party with her. But then Frank had dropped by and Frank was more interesting than tea parties, so they had dashed off to the swing. Frank was really strong and good at pushing.

“Higher, Frank!”, ordered the five-years old.

“So... You have a nanny now?”, asked Frank curiously as he obeyed her.

“Yes! His name is Poseidon and he's fun!”, nodded Hazel with a brilliant smile.

She waved her arms, pointing over to the man sitting on a blanket together with Nico, Bianca and baby Tyson, playing tea party. Frank yelped and held onto Hazel as she nearly fell off the swing.

“Hazel, dear! Why don't you and your friend join our little tea party?”, called Poseidon worried.

Hazel nodded and grabbed Frank's hand, pulling the boy after her as she excitedly ran over to her new nanny. She squeezed in between Nico and Poseidon, staring adoringly at her nanny.

“Now, who's your friend, Hazel?”, asked Poseidon curiously, handing plastic tea cups out.

“Is Frank! He's my bestest friend!”, exclaimed the little girl with a toothy grin.

Nico didn't look happy as he had to play girly stuff with his sisters, but Hazel loved him for playing with them. She loved how much time he spend with them all. She generally loved her family.

 

/2006\

 

It was a year later that Poseidon noticed that this was not the proper working-relationship he should have with his boss. Mostly so because Hades was laying on his stomach in the living room, holding a camera and filming Tyson's first steps, with Hazel, Nico, Bianca, Triton and Thanatos piled around him. Poseidon was cautiously walking behind Tyson, his arms spread to catch his baby in case Tyson fell. The dead giveaway for Poseidon however was the proud smile on Hades' own lips, as though he was witnessing the first steps of his very own children.

“Da!”, exclaimed Tyson as he fell onto his butt, making grabby motions for Poseidon.

Poseidon smiled proudly as he cradled his youngest son in his arms. But once Tyson was securely seated in his father's arms, he turned to stare at Hades with those large, hazelnut eyes of his.

“Pa!”, yelped Tyson, reaching out for Hades with his chubby fingers.

And _that_ was the moment Poseidon definitely knew that Hades was way too involved in his servant's life. Blushing a little embarrassed, he ushered the other children out to get cleaned up for dinner. Leaving him alone with an equally embarrassed Hades who stared up at him. Hades stood and put the camera down, offering Poseidon to take Tyson so Poseidon could get up too. Tyson giggled happily as he snuggled up to 'his pa'. Poseidon bit his lips at the adorable picture.

“I'm sorry for that”, mumbled Poseidon embarrassed. “I guess that we're living together and that your kids always call you papà, he just copies what he hears most.”

“Well, I'd not... object to that”, started Hades unsure, caressing Tyson's brown hair.

“What?”, asked Poseidon wide-eyed, staring at Hades.

“Poseidon, I never... I never forgot about you and having you here for the past year... I still love you and I don't want to mess up again, but I'd be grateful if you'd give me another chance.”

His dark eyes were honest as they stared down at Poseidon. Poseidon's heart was racing nervously. The fact that Hades had dumped him to marry a woman was what had send Poseidon into a desperate row of one-night-stands and short-term relationships with women, three of those resulting in his sons. But the truth was that he had tried everything to forget Hades, a feat he had never accomplished. He had started out trying to be professional here, but with the time he had really fallen for this family. Thanatos, Bianca, Nico and Hazel were amazing and he loved them a lot. And Hades, well, that man was like wine, he had only gotten better in the years that had passed. Strong, confident, handsome. And seemingly still interested in Poseidon as a potential lover.

Poseidon rested one hand against Hades' chest and leaned up to place a chaste kiss on Hades' lips, Tyson between them giggling delighted. Hades laid one arm around Poseidon's waist to hold him.

“I know we're probably too old for this, but do you want to be my boyfriend?”, asked Hades.

“Yes”, replied Poseidon with a large grin.

That was the moment Poseidon knew that his life was nearly perfect. The only thing he was missing was his third son, Perseus. It had only been a short-lived affair and both, him and Sally, had known that it wasn't meant to last. Still, when she told him off and said she could raise Perseus alone, it hurt, worse than anything Poseidon had ever experienced. He often wondered how Perseus was.

 

/2008\

 

What neither Poseidon nor Hades knew was that they were highly interfering with Thanatos' plans concerning his own love-life. Which in return interfered with Triton's plans for his own love-life. For the last year, Triton had tried to build up a relationship with Thanatos, had become friends with all of Thanatos' friends and had done his best to gain Thanatos' attention. But the new relationship between their fathers had thrown Triton off-guard. Still, at least he had found friends.

There was Herakles Grace from next door, who was somewhat between Thanatos' biggest rival and best friend, if Triton got that right. Then there was Thanatos' real best friend Persephone Gardner, a beautiful girl from his class and two houses over. And there was also Circe Torrington, but Thanatos wasn't all that fond of the pseudo-witch that kept insisting she could turn men into guinea pigs, still exactly that was what had made Triton befriend her. It was their senior year – well, Triton's, Persephone's and Herakles', since Circe and Triton were two years below them.

Thanatos was in the kitchen, making them a snack since Poseidon was now not really a servant anymore and also pretty busy with a teething Tyson these days. But sometimes Triton felt as though Thanatos only did that to impress him. The weird thing with being alone with Circe, Persephone and Herakles however was the way the blonde jock kept staring at him.

“Okay, what's your problem with me, Herakles?”, asked Triton annoyed, glaring at the blonde.

“You're hot, I want to kiss you”, shrugged Herakles nonchalantly.

“Then kiss him!”, chimed Persephone and Circe, giggling delighted.

Much to Triton's horror and surprise, Herakles did exactly that. And even more to Triton's horror and surprise, he actually liked kissing Herakles. The blonde was controlling and dominating, his arms possessively around Triton's waist, holding him close while kissing him harshly.

“So... What did I miss?”, asked Thanatos, gritting his teeth as he entered the room again.

Triton and Herakles bolted apart – or rather, Triton jumped off Herakles' lap. The black-haired boy looked incredibly flustered and guilty, his cheeks flushed and lips swollen from the kiss, still with Herakles' hands on his ass. The blonde jock smirked victoriously at Thanatos. The dark-skinned jock glared viciously down at Herakles. That was the second Triton _knew_ that Herakles was Thanatos' rival and not his friend and maybe that rivalry could help Triton moving on. Either he could try a relationship with Herakles, or the jealousy would finally make Thanatos act, but whatever happened, he would get a boyfriend out of this. He was fifteen and Circe had been teasing him about being unable to get a boyfriend for so many months now.

 

/2009\

 

Life was pretty awesome for a four-years-old Tyson, because he had the most awesome family ever. While all his big siblings had to be at school, he had his dad and his papà all to himself. He was comfortably laying between Poseidon and Hades on the bed, cuddled up to them while the three of them watched _Disney's_ _Hercules_. He giggled delighted as Disney's Zeus made Pegasus.

“Horsey!”, exclaimed Tyson, pointing at the screen. “Can I have horsey, daddy?”

“No. Absolutely not”, huffed Poseidon horrified and shook his head.

His little baby was not going to sit on one of those tall, large beings that could easily shake him off. Yes, Poseidon himself loved horses and he loved the stables the di Angelo mansion had, but Tyson was way too young for something as dangerous as riding.

“Papà?”, asked Tyson, turning large, pleading hazelnut-brown eyes on Hades.

“Maybe when you're older, bambino”, chuckled Hades amused, kissing his head.

“Hades!”, hissed Poseidon with a warning glare.

Tyson giggled and clapped loudly. His papà always allowed him anything while his daddy was always too worried, but he loved them both very much, just like he loved all of his siblings. Nico always knew the scariest stories and Bianca always coddled him and with Hazel, he could have great adventures, but Thanatos and Triton were always busy. But he loved his whole, messy family.

 

/2010\

 

It was in 2010, when Bianca was fourteen, that she entered the Homer High School. It was also then that for the first time, she had to focus on something else aside from her siblings. Normally, she would look up at Thanatos, but Thanatos had graduated last year. Or she would watch over her younger siblings. But Nico wasn't due to enter high school until next year and Hazel was only ten. Sure, Triton was still at high school, but somehow Thanatos was the only di Angelo he ever got warm with. And Tyson was only three. So for the first time, she had to put herself before her family. And that was nothing she was used to. It made her nervous.

“Hey. You're Bianca, right? From next door? The one that always hovers over Nico?”

Bianca startled slightly and looked up doe-eyed. It was the crazy punk-girl, the older sister of Nico's best friend Jason. The typical electric blue Grace eyes, black, unruly hair just like her father. Behind her stood two tall blondes guys, one with a scar running down his cheek, the other looking kind of scary, and two brunette girls, both a little weird and glaring over at the boys heatedly.

“Those are Zoe, Phoebe, Octavian and Luke. I'm Thalia. Nice to meet you”, grinned the Grace-girl.

“Y—Yes”, nodded Bianca, still staring at Thalia wide-eyed.

This was the start of a whole, new life, at least for her.

 

/2011\

 

The nice thing about life in Myosotis Lane was that everyone important was living close by. Nico had all his friends in close vicinity. There was Jason on the other side of the street, Rachel at the end of the road and Alabaster and Lou Ellen next door to Jason. Which basically were all of his best friends. The cool thing was, he could walk to school with all his friends and if they had a project to work on together, his partners were only on the other side of the road.

“So, what do you guys think about the Castellans?”, asked Alabaster randomly.

He was hanging in the hammock with his younger sister and Rachel. Jason was laying on the ground beneath them, his arms crossed under his head as he stared up at the clouds, with Nico comfortably laying on top of him, Jason's shirt pushed up enough so Nico could doodle on Jason's six-pack, using his packs as panels for a stupid little comic. Jason giggled every now and then when that pen scratched his skin, only to get chided by Nico for it.

“I don't know”, shrugged Nico. “I mean, taking in the Stolls was pretty awesome. They cause nothing but trouble, I loved how they wrapped Mister G's car with toilette paper.”

“Yeah, dad _loved_ that”, snorted Jason and rolled his eyes.

“I liked when they took Octavian in. He's awesome”, hummed Rachel, looking up from her book.

“Yeah, you're like the only one thinking that, aside from Luke”, snorted Alabaster.

“But I think Mister C should stop with the taking in strays thing he has going on at one point”, added Lou Ellen and frowned. “I mean, it's awesome having all those new neighbors all the time, but the new one kind of freaks me out. He's always glaring... and the eye-patch! Right, Ally?”

“Uhm...”, started Alabaster and flushed a little. “Sure, whatever you say.”

Nico snorted amused and rolled his eyes. He knew exactly where that blush was coming from, Al always did that when looking at Ethan, which was the real reason why Alabaster had asked to begin with. Nico wasn't stupid, he knew that. He knew most things, because he was in the middle of all the gossip, what with his sisters. Life as a di Angelo in Myosotis Lane was pretty awesome.

 

/2012\

 

Life as an Ugliano in New York was hell. Percy hated it, he hated everything about his life aside from his mother. They were living in a tiny rat hole. The kids at school always made fun of him for being a little slow and dyslexic. His mother worked basically all the time to give them any chance to come by at all. And since she worked all the time, he was mostly stuck with his stepfather, who was about the worst person he had ever encountered in his life. So between the bullies at school and the abusive stepfather at home, Percy really wished for a nice, good life. One where he was safe and loved and would finally stop hurting. One with a real home, not just a hell-hole like this.

He had always wanted to get to know his real father, to see if he had siblings or... How would his life be if he had stayed with his father instead of his mother? Biting his lips, he stared at his screen.

He had googled Poseidon Jackson – his biological father – about a thousand times. And it somehow had escalated to a kind of stalkerish behavior on his side, because he kept track of every time Poseidon went onto some fancy gala with his boyfriend Hades di Angelo. It just made Percy feel so envious and sad to know what a pretty and perfect life his dad was living, not once wasting a thought on Percy probably, all happy with that new family of his.

 

/2013\

 

“You could tell my papà. He'd help you”, stated Nico.

The Italian boy was laying on his back, head hanging over the bed as he stared upside-down at Jason. Jason was laying on the ground, in return staring up at Nico. Deep, dark brown locked onto electric blue. Jason folded his hands behind his head after shrugging a little.

“It's not like she's hitting me or anything”, snorted Jason, glaring a little bit.

He hated his stepmother a lot. Mostly so because she hated him. Hera Grace was a loud, screeching mother. When Jason had been little, he hadn't understood why she always called him and Thalia names and why she was always fighting with their dad. Now he was sixteen and he really wasn't stupid. He knew that all his dad's travels for work with his private secretary were just excuses to get away from his wife and fuck. Which was why the secretary was so frequently changing, always a gorgeous girl, or a pretty boy. The current one was named Ganymedes and Hera was throwing a fit again, had thrown a vase against the wall and called Jason a bastard, the metaphorical horns Zeus had put onto her. Jason knew that he and Thalia weren't hers, that Zeus and Hera had been long married even when Thalia and Jason had been born. One of the few more long-lasting affairs of Zeus, but then their mother had gone into depression, died drunken in a car-accident, leaving Thalia and Jason to move in with their father, stepmother and their half-brother, Herakles. Zeus didn't care much, he spend all his time on his work trips, with his whores, leaving Hera to curse the baggage he left her with. The bastard children, the living proof of his cheating. She had dared to hit Jason once and the boy had done what had become his default-mechanism when he felt unloved. He ran to the di Angelos and cried in Nico's arms. Nico was the only one – aside from Thalia – who he trusted enough to let them see him cry. Hades had found them and asked where he had gotten the bruise. Hades made sure she'd know that if she ever left her hand against either child again, he would drag her through the dirt in a public law-suit about child abuse. She had never hit him again, but that didn't stop her from verbally abusing him. He just took it as his cue and left for the di Angelos.

“They're just words, you can't sue someone about words”, muttered Jason weakly, knowing that Hades probably could, but really just not wanting it. “Just drop it, Nick.”

“I don't like it!”, complained the younger one with a glare. “I don't like seeing you hurt, even if it's 'just' emotionally. I want to make it better, Jay. Tell me how.”

Jason sat up and tilted his head, his cheeks a little red. “You could... uhm... kiss it better?”

Nico stared at him owlishly for a second. They had always orbited around each other. Nico wanted to protect Jason and Jason felt loved and safe with Nico, that was how it had always been. Nico leaned in slowly, blushing himself as their lips met in their very first kiss. The first of many.


	2. From Ugly to Angels

Chapter 2: From Ugly to Angels

 

Percy groaned and cracked one eye open. His body hurt. Everything was a blur. The last thing he remembered was being in the car with his mother, on their way to Montauk – the only place where they ever felt safe and good. But it had rained and there was something on the road and...

“Good morning, Perseus. I'm Doctor Solace”, stated a pleasant voice. “How do you feel?”

“Everything hurts”, mumbled Percy and groaned. “Where am I? Where's my mom?”

“I'm... so sorry, Perseus. You have been in a car accident and your... your mother, she wasn't as lucky as you. She shielded you and... she died”, replied the voice – the doctor. “You're in the hospital. But don't worry, we already contacted your father and Mister Ugliano is on his way.”

His mother was dead. He was in the hospital. With a broken arm and by the feeling of it, a few broken ribs. And Gabe was on his way. To do what? Pick him up and bring him 'home'? Where to? A life all alone with Gabe? Without his mother? What reasons did he have to stay at that place?

“Where are my things?”, asked Percy, turning toward the doctor.

“Right here”, replied the doctor, pointing at a very tattered backpack on a chair. “I'll leave you alone for a moment to gather your thoughts. As I said, your father is on his way. He'll be here soon.”

It hadn't been in good condition before, but after a car accident? It looked horrible. Percy took a deep breath and stood up, his legs shaking. He knew how to walk with pain. He has been used to that for many years now. Reaching out with his right hand, the one not put into a cast, he took it and went through it. Some of his clothes were in it so he got hastily changed (as hastily as possible with the blasted cast). If Gabe was on his way here, then there was no way Percy would still be here by that time. No way. He was not returning to that rathole if Gabe was all that would be waiting there. As he pulled out a cap to put onto his head, a picture fell out of the bag. It must have loosened up, he normally carried it tugged deep, deep into the back of the bag.

It was a picture of his father, Poseidon. Arm in arm with the boyfriend. Percy had cut it out of the newspapers, from an article about Mister Hades di Angelo, the super advocate who helped humanity and fought for the rights of gays and helped children and being a fucking saint in general. The article had been about Hades getting some kind of humanity-prize. Again. Percy hadn't cared. He just liked the picture, because his father looked so happy in it. Percy wanted to be that happy too. It wasn't fair. Why did his father get the perfect boyfriend while his mother was stuck with the biggest bastard on this planet? He turned the picture around in his hand, staring at his handwriting.

Once, only once, had he really been a nosy brat. He had tracked down his father's address and phone number, in case he... He honestly didn't know why. But he called, had called a few times. When it had been especially bad. When he wanted to get out. But then a child picked up, always some bright and giggly child, sometimes a girl, sometimes a boy. And then he remembered. Poseidon had a nice life, a happy life. He didn't need someone like Percy in it. Percy didn't fit in.

But right now, this seemed like the only out he had. Back then, there had always been his mother to be considered. Now... Now she was gone. And he was alone. He had no one. He never had any friends to begin with. His mother had no family left, no grandparents or aunts and uncles. All that was left was a shitty little apartment. And Gabe. Nothing was holding him here anymore.

Gripping the photo determined, he pulled the cap into his face and shouldered his backpack. Time to get out of here. Time to get away. Time to meet his biological father.

 

/break\

 

Jason was on the way over to steal his boyfriend. The problem with the di Angelos was that they were a tight-knitted bunch. Family dinner was obligatory and they had spend the whole afternoon already playing Monopoly – their typical Sunday. Family day. Since the Graces weren't quite as tight, Jason couldn't really relate. The only one he was close to was his sister Thalia. He didn't get along with Herakles and even less so with Hera. And their dad was always working – or whoring around. He didn't understand how a happy family worked, only saw it with the di Angelos. Jason enjoyed spending time with the di Angelos, because it made him feel like part of a proper family. So he wanted to go and partake in dinner and the family movie.

Half way to the di Angelos, he paused. Which was saying a lot, because they were living on the other side of the street. But there was a boy, standing there, in the middle of the street. Ragged clothes, jeans torn at the knees – and not in the fashionable sense, but more in the old-and-worn-out sense – a New York Yankees cap on his head, black, messy hair pointing out from beneath. He looked completely misplaced here. Myosotis Lane was a rich suburbia, who lived here would never wear clothes long enough for them to basically fall apart. Jason also had never seen the kid before. Thin frame, but sun-kissed skin. He was pretty and interesting. Different. So Jason approached him.

“Hey. Can I help you? You look a little lost”, offered Jason with a smile.

“I'm looking for Hades di Angelo”, said Percy. “Just got... distracted by all the fancy.”

“The fancy, huh?”, grinned Jason amused. “Well, you're standing in front of the right house. If you want, we could go inside? I know the di Angelos pretty well. Come on.”

Jason tried to take the boy's hand, but he flinched away. Jason frowned and took a closer look. The boy's left arm was in a cast, his lip was split, he had one black eye. He looked worse for wear. Tilting his head, he decided to first bring the boy to where he wanted to go. So he knocked on the door. Only seconds later did the door open and deliciousness stood in front of them. Nico di Angelo, local sex god (according to Jason), with only his black boxershorts on, hair still dripping with water, the drops running down an olive-skinned body, well-defined, strong arms and a nice sixpack. Jason licked his lips subconsciously and noted out of the corner of his eye that the stranger did the same. Wonderful. Did he just bring one of Nico's exes home to him? Hopefully not.

“Hey, Jay”, grinned Nico and pulled his lover into a kiss. “You're right on time. Who's this?”

“I want to speak to Hades di Angelo”, stated Percy, looking suspiciously at the couple.

“Nico!”, screeched Hazel from the background. “Go and get dressed! You can't open the door like that, not even to seduce Jason! And stop seducing Jason before dinner!”

Nico grinned, pulling Jason inside. “Well, if you're here to see papà, come on in. But he's not here yet. He's at his office, forgot something there that he needs for the court date on Monday. He'll be back soon though, in time for dinner. You can wait for him inside.”

Percy nodded stiffly and followed the two other boys inside. The house was ridiculously large. It looked like a fancy palace or shit. Percy shook his head as he followed them to a dining hall. Who the fuck had a dining hall? They had a tiny table in their tiny kitchen!

“Who's your friend?”, asked a pretty, dark-skinned girl with golden eyes.

She was in the middle of setting the table, with the help of a very young kid, maybe first grade. The boy looked proud of the responsibility he was being handed, his hazel eyes sparkling.

“Percy”, replied Percy shortly. “And I'm not a friend. I'm here to see Hades di Angelo.”

“Huh”, nodded the girl curiously, thrusting her hand out. “Hazel di Angelo, nice to meet you. That's my baby brother Tyson Jackson and you already met Nico. And his attachment.”

“Stop calling me an attachment, Hazel!”, protested Jason with a glare.

“Get changed, Nico!”, ordered Hazel, ignoring the blonde. “And bring the others with you.”

Nico nodded his head and left, pulling Jason along upstairs. Hazel heaved a long-suffering sigh before she returned to the kitchen to bring more. Percy just sat there awkwardly.

“You look like daddy”, observed Tyson curiously and hopped onto a chair.

Wow. The seven-years old was the most intelligent member of the family. Great. Percy glared.

“Shush. Go and help your sister”, grunted Percy, making shunning motions with his hands.

But Tyson just giggled and walked over to him, hugging his middle. “You're funny. I like you.”

With that, the little boy left, leaving Percy on his own. Green eyes roamed the dining hall. His fingers traced one of the pretty plates. Golden rim, a fancy pattern of the ocean. Each plate seemed to show something different. A story. Percy stood, intrigued. He walked around the table, looking.

“They tell the story of Loki, the trickster god of the underworld. From the Nordic myths”, explained a soft voice, slowly coming closer. “His adventures with his blood-brother Odin.”

A beautiful girl emerged from the stairs, looking a lot like Half-Naked Hot (Percy hadn't listened to what his name was, but this one seemed to fit). Olive-skin, black, long curls framing her curves. She was wearing a white silken dress that probably had been made by some big-time designer.

“Hi”, said Percy, a little awkwardly. “I'm here to see... your father.”

“Nico already said something like that”, nodded the girl amused. “I'm Bianca. Nice to meet you.”

Percy nodded slowly and sat back down. He felt awkward and like an intruder. He didn't want the pretty girl to think he was walking around because he wanted to steal something. She just smiled at him softly and sat down next to him, grabbing one of the plates on her way and placing it in front of him. He frowned as he saw two horses, snuggling up to each other, an eight-legged foal between them. He loved horses. This one was a little weird, with eight legs, but kind of cute.

“One time, Loki turned into a beautiful mare to seduce the fastest running horse there was. He carried a foal with eight legs, one that would later become Odin's companion”, explained Bianca.

Percy nodded, not sure what to say to that. The plate was pretty, very detailed and beautifully painted. He had a hunch that all plates were unique pieces, one of a kind things. Expensive.

“Okay. If those slackers don't come down soon, I will kick them in the butt!”, declared Hazel.

She came back, carrying a tray with glasses. Fancy crystal glasses. Percy was not going to touch anything here. He would probably never be able to pay for the stuff if he broke it. Hazel sat down on Bianca's other side, tugging Tyson with her. The boy kept staring intensely at Percy. Four males walked down the stairs. The couple from earlier, but the blonde was limping in a very obvious manner. One of the others was a tall and broad black guy. Smoking hot. And the next... wow. He looked nearly identical to Percy, just older and also a little sharper around the cheekbones.

“Those are Thanatos and Triton. And they're going to bring the food now”, introduced Hazel.

The four guys heaved sighs and obeyed their younger sister. One carried a plate with three chickens, marinaded and smelling delicious, most likely also filled. The next brother carried a large pot with peas and carrots and corn. The third had a gigantic bowl of fresh, lush salad in his arms. And the most important one. The sauce. Smelling really delicious and looking good. His stomach growled.

“Our guest seems hungry”, chuckled Nico amused.

Jason sat down next to Percy at the head of the table, with Nico on his other side and opposite Bianca. The two oldest brothers took their places on Nico's side of the table. Percy grew a little uncomfortable, sitting there at the family table with his... siblings? He had to think that this would be how things could have been if his father had kept him. Being part of this.

“Children! We're home!”, called a voice.

“Good. Dinner is getting cold”, called Bianca back, amused. “Hurry up.”

She was walking around the table, serving everyone a bit of everything. Percy grew even more uncomfortable as she filled the horse-plate with food for him. And then they entered and damn it, they looked just as perfect and happy as they had on the picture. How was that possible? He thought the photo had just been a picture, just posing. But this shit was for real. _They_ were for real.

“Oh. We have guests”, noted Hades curiously as he took his place at the other head of the table.

Poseidon smiled curiously and followed his boyfriend, sitting down next to Hades, opposite Percy. There was a giant, long table between them and yet here they were. Percy and his father.

“I'm Percy Ugliano”, said Percy softly, unsure. “I came... I wanted... I...”

Hades caught on with the nervousness of the teen. Something was worrying the boy, there was something he wanted to get off his chest, but he didn't know how. He needed time to muss it over.

“Eat first, talk then. You look starved, boy”, chuckled Hades amused, one eyebrow cocked.

Percy blushed when his stomach growled as if on cue. He hadn't eaten properly in days. Everyone around him started eating, so he did it too. This family, they just... they fell into banter. Talking about their day, making plans for tomorrow. The perfect, little family. Only when they were half way through the meal did Hades return his attention to their guest.

“Now, Percy. What was it you wanted to say?”, asked the lawyer tentatively.

“I need your help”, said Percy and locked eyes with Hades. “You're the best lawyer, right? I need you to take my case. I... uhm... I don't have money, really, but... I need your help.”

“And you come to my home for that?”, questioned Hades, arching one eyebrow.

“It was the only address I had”, shrugged Percy, still staring at Hades.

The food was amazing and the kids around here were so cheerful. He changed his mind. He wouldn't intrude on this perfect, little family. They didn't need a burden like him. He didn't belong to this world. He was like Alice, gone through the rabbit hole. He needed to get out of this Wonderland again somehow. He was not going to stay here and force himself onto a family that didn't need him, didn't even want him. After all, Poseidon had never bothered to call before.

“What kind of case may that be, Mister Ugliano?”, wanted Hades to know, straightening some.

“I need you to declare me of age. You can do that, right? I'm sixteen, I'm basically an adult anyway. You could do that, make me a legal adult so I can stay on my own, right?”, asked Percy.

“Why should he do that?”, snorted Thanatos, glaring at the stranger.

A raggedy boy, just appearing on their doorsteps, wanting their father to take a pro bono case? Without any word of explanation? Thanatos was studying hard to join his father's law firm. He knew better than to take a boy like this by his word. Maybe a little druggie, living on the streets, wanting to be free from his parents' rules? They had encountered those before. Those that thought just because Hades helped children, he'd free them from all responsibility. Percy frowned and stood, spotting today's newspaper on the commode close by. Grabbing it, he looked through it until he found the right page. Very much in the back. Where else? Why should his mother's death made the front page? Just another lost soul, with all the bad news, what did one more matter... Opening the newspaper at that page, he placed it in front of Hades. Both adults pulled it closer to read.

_Local Sally Ugliano (36) dies in tragic car accident, leaving her son Perseus Ugliano (16), who survived the accident by a miracle, and her husband Gabriel Ugliano (43) to mourn..._

“My mother died two days ago, Friday night. I need you to declare me of age so I don't have to return to my stepfather. It's really simple as that”, said Percy. “You help kids. Kids like me, don't you? You got prizes for this kind of shit. So help me too.”

“Demanding prat”, snorted Hades and shook his head. “I'm sorry for your loss, boy. But after your mother's death, you should value the family you have left. I do help children who are in... bad places. But I don't take cases without any proof that the place they're stay-”

“Perseus”, read Poseidon out loud, pulling the newspaper all to him. “Perseus, this says Perseus.”

“Yes”, nodded Percy, cocking one eyebrow. “But I go by Percy. Doesn't sound as old-fashioned.”

Nico frowned confused. His father looked interested. Hades believed that there was a reason this Perseus/Percy-guy wanted to get away from his home, but Hades didn't just bow to a kid's whim. He wanted something more. A truth; the boy's truth. What was strange was Poseidon's behavior. And Nico's siblings seemed to think the same. Triton pushed his plate away some so he could lay his arms on the table top, leaning forward to inspect his father's expression. Thanatos was more concerned by Triton's concern. Hazel and Bianca looked worried. Tyson was still devouring every piece of food that he could reach, not noticing the shift in atmosphere.

“You're Sally's son, Perseus?”, asked Poseidon slowly. “Your mother's name is Sally. That's not... not a coincident. Not with a name like that, that your mother would be named Sally... You can't...”

“So you _do_ know about me”, hummed Percy intrigued, cocking his head to look at Poseidon for a second as though this turn of events was unexpected to him, before turning back to Hades. “I guess we reached the point in the conversation where I tell you why you should take my case for free then, because after not paying aliments for sixteen years, I guess your boyfriend owes me enough to pay off for this. Hi, by the way. I'm your boyfriend's bastard son. Pleased to meet you.”

A very awkward silence befell the room. Hades stared, looked at the boy properly for the first time. Hidden under the cap and the baggy clothes, it was a little hard to make it out, but looking closely, it was painfully obvious. His physiques, his dark, messy hair, the same nose and the eyes. Those sea-green depths that Hades had ever only encountered in Poseidon and Triton.

“He's your third son?”, whispered Hades, leaning over to Poseidon.

“There can't possibly be many boys named Perseus, born to a woman named Sally”, muttered Poseidon and shook his head. “You are... You are my son. But... Why...?”

“Why I'm here? Like I said, I need some legal help and I can't afford a lawyer. I thought I could guilt your boyfriend into taking my case. Don't worry, I'll be out of your hair in no time”, huffed Percy, arms crossed over his chest. “I'll be out as soon as everything is finished.”

Poseidon frowned and wanted to stand. He wanted to shout and to cry and to... He didn't exactly know. This was all just too sudden and too cold. He had always pictured meeting Percy to be a warm and welcoming thing to happen. But this wasn't anything like it.

“Why do you want to get away from home so badly?”, asked Nico softly, looking at Percy.

“Because I've had half the broken ribs even before I got into the car accident”, replied Percy nonchalantly, his eyes cold and hard as he glared at the inquisitive boy. “And without my mother, I have no reason to ever return to this place or this man again. Not even the laws can make me.”

Poseidon grew angry and sad and tired and confused. This man, this stepfather, he had abused Poseidon's little baby? All these years, the only reason why Poseidon had stayed clear had been because he had thought his baby would be safe with Sally. He stood abruptly, so the chair fell over and hit the ground. The sound echoed through the eerily silent room. Percy froze up when the man suddenly walked toward him, unsure what was happening. But a hug was the last thing he expected.

“You're not going back to any place where you're not safe, Perseus”, declared Poseidon, hugging Percy as tightly as Percy's injuries would allow. “You will stay with us. Here. Like you should have a long time ago. You're my son and... and... I can't even express how sorry I am that I hadn't been there to protect you. But I will. I will never let anyone harm you again.”

Percy growled and pushed his father off, glaring. “I don't want to play happy family with you and the people you  _chose over me_ . I just want my own life!”

Poseidon was stunned and took a step back, as though he had been hit. That was what Percy thought of him? A heartbroken expression passed over his face. Hades hated that expression.

“Nico, why don't you bring Percy upstairs, show him one of the empty bedrooms? He looks in dire need of a shower and sleep. I'll take your case, Percy. But first, rest. I'll see what I can do.”

Percy looked suspicious, still glaring. He was like a beaten dog, chased into a corner. Still, when the Hot One stood and motioned for Percy to follow, the promise of a bed and a bath were too tempting to resist. After all, if he'd run now and sleep on the streets, he could hardly stay in touch of his new lawyer and chances were high the police would track him down and bring him back to Gabe. He was not going to risk being picked up by the police and brought to Gabe like a stray dog just because he had too much pride and was too suspicious.

“Fine. I'll stay. But only until this thing is over”, grunted Percy and followed Nico upstairs.

Poseidon stared after Percy, still with that heartbroken expression on his face. At least until Hades stepped up to him. Poseidon's first reaction was anger, so he hit the other man's chest. Triton and Thanatos urged the girls on to help and clear the table. To leave the room. Jason took Tyson by the hand and brought the youngest one upstairs too, to play with him.

“Why did you do that?! Why did you say that?! I won't just let my son-”, started Poseidon to rant.

“I said I take his case. I never said I'd help him stay on his own”, interrupted Hades, wrapping his arms around Poseidon's waist. “All those years that I have had you at my side now, there was always one wish you had, your heart's desire, the one thing I had never been able to give you for not even money could buy it. To have your son Perseus with you too. The way I see it, his case isn't to be declared of age, but rather to have you assigned as his legal guardian instead of his stepfather. Tomorrow, I'll look into it. Have some private investigators look through this Gabriel-character, asking Percy for permission to look into his medical files. Don't worry, amato bello.”

“Thank you, love”, whispered Poseidon, voice muffled by Hades' chests, tears soaking his shirt.

“You don't need to thank me for that, Don”, chuckled Hades lowly. “How about we go upstairs, wouldn't want the kids to see you having a mental melt-down?”

“Don't make fun of me”, muttered Poseidon and rubbed his eyes. “Imagine it would be one of yours! You'd only get to meet your child as a teenager and then you learn the one who was supposed to protect him in your place had been doing impossible things to your child?!”

“Poseidon”, started Hades tenderly and lifted Poseidon's chin so his boyfriend looked up at him. “The way I see it, your children are mine too. I love Triton and Tyson not any less. So I understand what you feel, amore. And I promise you, I'll do the best I can to keep him safe.”

Poseidon leaned against Hades' side as Hades guided him upstairs and toward their bedroom for some privacy. Neither of them really wanted to discuss any of this with the children just now. At least Hades didn't want the children to see Poseidon so devastated. For now, Poseidon needed time to sort his thoughts, he didn't need to be confronted with curious, nagging children.

 

/break\

 

Thanatos, Triton, Hazel and Bianca were in the kitchen, taking care of everything in silence. Hazel was putting Tupperware out for Bianca to fill with the left-overs – of which they had many, because after the most recent events, they had suddenly felt not as hungry anymore. Triton was doing the dishes, his arms elbow-deep in soap while Thanatos dried them off.

“What... just happened in there?”, asked Hazel when she couldn't keep it in anymore.

“My brother found us”, replied Triton simply, monotonously.

“It's... not like we didn't know that there was another Jackson out there”, pointed Bianca out, closing one of the Tupperware boxes and putting it into the fridge.

“Yeah, but I thought dad said that he's happy and that his mother hogs him and doesn't want him to meet us!”, exclaimed Hazel upset, glaring at them. “He doesn't look happy to me!”

“Well, we can only assume what was going through that woman's head”, grunted Triton darkly, dropping a plate back into the sink. “I'll finish those later. I need a break.”

He practically stormed out of the kitchen. Thanatos' eyes flickered between the dishes, his sisters and the Jackson who was fleeing the scene. Bianca sighed softly and nudged her brother.

“Go after him, he looks really winded”, muttered the Italian tenderly.

Thanatos nodded stiffly and stalked upstairs, after the other. Hazel was still glaring and Bianca thought it better to give her another moment to calm down and think to herself. She understood where the younger di Angelo was coming from, after all. When Tyson, Triton and Poseidon had moved in with them, Poseidon had a lot of pictures and a few of them were of a baby boy who was neither Tyson nor Triton. Poseidon had explained it to them, told them that he had another son, one who was living a happy life with his mommy and that it was fine. Hazel was right, this didn't look or sound right at all. Bianca put the last Tupperware boxes into the fridge, closing the door maybe a little too loudly. The boy was what? Fifteen? Sixteen? She wasn't sure if she wanted to know how long the abuse had been going on, or what _exactly_ the boy had been through.


	3. No Charity Case

Chapter 3: No Charity Case

 

About an hour later, Bianca sat in front of her vanity, with her sister Hazel behind her, brushing her hair. After they had finished cleaning the kitchen – and they had taken some extra time, their motions slowed down by their thoughts – they had retreated back upstairs. But Bianca didn't feel like leaving Hazel alone would be a good idea, she looked too upset, so Bianca stayed. The two sisters were silent, both contemplating their own thoughts. Hazel hummed softly as she put the brush away and started braiding her older sister's hair. Bianca stared thoughtful at Hazel.

“I don't want to picture how it would have been if your mother had kept you... if she had ended up in a wrong marriage. _You_ could be Percy, standing down there, all alone, not... fitting in”, whispered Bianca softly, concerned. “He must feel awful. Out of place. He looked that way when I first saw him. Like he was afraid to touch anything, as though he just... didn't belong here.”

“Well, he doesn't. Don't look at me like that, that's not what I meant”, replied Hazel. “I mean... look at him. He's obviously not exactly from a rich family. Have you seen his clothes? And his backpack? He was probably intimidated by all the expensive stuff that's just uselessly staying around while they probably didn't even have enough money to get him new clothes... This is a completely different world for him. _I_ would be feeling completely out of place.”

“I feel bad for him”, agreed Bianca concerned.

 

/break\

 

Triton was pacing the room, had been doing so ever since he had stormed out of the kitchen. Up and down, down and up. He was gesturing wildly, every now and then muttering something to himself. The room he was pacing was not his own though, it was Thanatos'. And Thanatos was right now laying on his own bed, propped up on his elbows, grinning amused as he watched, just like he had done for the past hour. He didn't particularly care about the new kid – he was feeling bad for what Percy had been through, yes, but he was also used to his father taking in strays. Like Poseidon, Triton and Tyson. Percy was just another Jackson they would take in and Thanatos was okay with that. Everything else Percy had been through would be sorted out later. His father would do that.

“Tri? Would you stop pacing for long enough to share your thoughts with me?”, asked Thanatos.

“I have a brother!”, exclaimed Triton, hands in the air. “I mean, I always knew there was one more, aside from Tyson. But... I never thought I'd meet him. Dad always said... that the boy's mother didn't want for us to have contact with him. He was always just a name. Now he has a face. And an abusive stepfather. I don't like that. I don't like that one of my baby siblings got hurt and I couldn't protect him! That's not... not okay! And did you see the way he flinched away from dad?!”

“Tri, calm down”, whispered Thanatos softly and stood.

He walked over to Triton and hugged the younger man. He knew that Triton was very protective of his younger siblings. Had been ever since Hazel once fell out of a tree and broke her leg. She didn't stop crying and Triton carried her back home and cuddled her until Nico found their parents. Triton liked to be in control, he wanted to make sure that his family was safe.

 

/break\

 

Nico was just opening the curtains so a little light could flood the unused room. It was very dusty, but it was probably far more than Percy was used to anyway. Concerned, dark eyes wandered back to the green-eyed teen. The boy had his arms crossed and stood around a little awkwardly, looking around. It was obvious that Percy felt intimidated by all the expensive things around the house.

“You can make it more homey, of course. Tone it down some, if that would make you more comfortable”, offered Nico and placed Percy's backpack on the desk. “Do you need clothes?”

“I'm not a charity case”, grunted Percy angered. “I don't need your pity.”

“It was actually concern and not pity”, corrected Nico and cocked one eyebrow. “You only have a tiny backpack with you and that's kind of... singed. I was just wondering if you needed a fresh change of clothes, or if you have something clean on you.”

“Oh”, nodded Percy, frowning a little. “I could... use some clothes, yes... Thank you.”

“I'll go and get them for you. And a towel. And a robe, if you'd like”, offered Nico with a smile.

The Italian turned away to leave the room, but Percy stopped him. “Hold on, Sex on Legs!”

Nico stumbled over his own feet at that and turned around wide-eyed. “What did you just call me?”

“I'm not good with names”, shrugged Percy, looking Nico up and down. “And being as loaded as you are, you surely must own a mirror. Have you ever seen yourself, Mister Armani Model? Now get over here and help me undress, if you're so eager to be helpful.”

“W—What?”, stammered Nico, blinking a couple of times at the bolt boy.

Percy just rolled his eyes and lifted his broken arm. Nico grinned sheepishly and walked over to help Percy out of his clothes. He couldn't help but stare a little. Percy was well-defined and thoroughly gorgeous. Aside from the countless scars and bruises littering Percy's body.

“What? Are you pitying me or eye-fucking me? Please stop both”, snorted Percy amused and shook his head. “Just... get me clothes, I'll go and take a long, long shower now.”

Turning around, Percy left the bedroom to get into the connected bathroom, swaying his hips some, well-aware of the dark eyes staring at his ass. He grinned a little at that. He was used to being stared at. For being a ragged delinquent. But never before had such a handsome guy stared at him with such interest. It made him feel kind of good, to have a hot guy looking at him like that. A blush lit up his face when he thought that he had actually said the name _out loud_. It had been a slip, really. But it was a good thing he was so excellent on covering his emotions up, because otherwise he would have turned into a stuttering, blushing mess. He'd never be able to look Hot into the eyes. 

Once he had the door closed behind him, he took a startled look around. This bathroom was bigger than his old bedroom. Heck, his new bedroom was bigger than their old apartment! No, not his. It wasn't his bedroom, it was just the place he would be crashing at until everything legal was through. Taking a shaky breath, he climbed into the shower and turned on the hot water. Moaning softly, he closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling of warm water. Last time he had taken a warm shower had been two weeks ago, because Gabe had lost the money for their warm water bills during a poker game. Gabe. The thought of never having to return to that man filled him with so much relief that his knees gave in. Taking another shaky breath, he slid down the wall and sat down under the hot stream, his legs pulled up against his chest. He would never return to Gabe again. But he would also never return to his mother again, because she was _dead_. For the first time since he had learned about his mother's death did he allow himself to cry. He had to keep his shit together to leave the hospital, to track down Hades and Poseidon, to stay on the streets. He couldn't afford to cry. But right now, right here, he was all alone and he could finally drop the act. If there was one thing Percy knew how to do, it was acting tough. He had to, if he wanted to survive. To live with Gabe, he could never show his pain. To endure the bullies, he could never show how much it hit home. He was good at sucking it up and giving others snark, only when he was alone did he allow himself to be weak and hurt and broken. He shook under his tears and the thought that his mother was dead.

 

/break\

 

Hades sighed softly as he combed his fingers through dark, silken hair. Poseidon was laying curled together next to him, his head on Hades' lap while Hades was on the laptop. He was looking up Gabriel Ugliano. And Sally, for that matter. He was also mailing some of his contacts, his most trusted PI, his contact with the police department, the local prosecutor. Just some precautions. He wanted to get this started and over with as soon as possible.

“Father?”

“Yes, Nico?”, grunted Hades and looked up. “What can I do for you? But be quiet, Poseidon finally fell asleep. He's been crying for ten minutes straight when we got to our room.”

Nico threw a concerned look at his nearly-stepfather. “Is he doing alright, papà?”

“It was a lot to take in, that his son is here and... was abused”, whispered Hades softly. “He feels guilty, for not having been able to protect the boy. Now, what did you want to say, bambino?”

“I just... I gave Percy the room opposite mine. I want to keep an eye on him”, stated Nico. “He's taking a shower. I saw... his injuries. He said his mother died Friday. That's been two days ago, the car accident. He should be in the hospital. Maybe you should call Mister Solace over?”

“Good idea. Thank you”, nodded Hades. “And I'd appreciate it if you'd look after your new fratellino a bit. I don't think he's very comfortable around here, bambino.”

Baby brother? Nico cocked one eyebrow and nodded before leaving again. He had just met the guy an hour ago, they weren't brothers. Not even related. But then again, Hades just wanted to make sure that Nico and the others would develop a sense of protectiveness over the new boy. Not that that hadn't already happened the moment the defensive and obviously hurt boy had entered their home. Closing the bedroom door of his parents slowly, he headed for his own room, hoping to find his lover there. He smiled slightly when he indeed found Jason laying on his stomach on the ground, building a castle out of wooden blocks with Tyson.

“Hey, boys, what are you up to?”, asked Nico softly and knelt over Jason to kiss his neck.

“We build a castle!”, exclaimed Tyson proudly, holding his Nico-figurine up. “You're a prince!”

The up side of having a loaded father? Tyson had little figures of each member of the family. Nico bit his lips at the Jason-figurine that was wearing a dress. Jason grunted annoyed.

“Jason is your princess”, grinned Tyson before frowning. “Can I have a Percy-doll too?”

“I'm sure papà will get you one”, laughed Nico amused. “My princess, do you like your dress?”

“Fuck you”, muttered Jason lowly, glaring. “How's the kid doing?”

“Showering”, said Nico with a frown. “I hope he's alright. He's very defensive. Rude. Cornered.”

“He has walls. Protects himself, I guess”, stated Jason softly. “Everything is foreign to him and all.”

“Fratellone, play with us!”, demanded Tyson, tugging on Nico's sleeve.

The topic of Percy was off the table for now, because his baby brother demanded attention.

 

/break\

 

Percy was stunned when he looked at the dolphin clock in the bathroom (not just because it was a dolphin clock), because the numbers on it indicated that he had spend two hours in the showers. Then again, it was warm, running water and the shower was actually clean and beautiful. He used the overly fluffy towel to dry himself, snuggling up into it. But then he spotted the equally fluffy robe. He sighed softly as he put it on. And the... _Nightmare Before Christmas_ boxer-shorts? Percy snickered as he imagined Hot &Handsome in those boxers. So the bad-ass had a cute side too? He contemplated the jeans and shirt, but in the end only took the black shirt with the silver skull on the front. He wasn't planning on leaving the bedroom again today, he would just curl together on the bed for the rest of the day. Which didn't work out when he entered the bedroom again.

“Hello again, Percy, nice to see you again. I got worried when you were gone by the time your... stepfather arrived. Hades explained the situation to me. I had no idea.”

Percy glared suspiciously at the blonde doctor from the hospital. And Hades and Poseidon.

“I called our neighbor to check you through, make sure you're alright”, stated Hades.

“I... We'll leave you alone for that, of course”, murmured Poseidon softly as he walked up to Percy and pulled the boy into another unwilling hug. “I just want to make sure you're... fine...”

“I'm not fine”, snorted Percy and pushed the other off.

“If you'd give us a moment?”, suggested Apollo Solace, staring at Hades and Poseidon.

The blonde doctor waited until the other two adults left before turning his attention back to Percy.

 

/break\

 

The examination was sort of humiliating, but also a little relieving. He had a few bruises, the broken bones that he already had known about. The arm and the ribs would be healing up, so what was all the fuss about? The blonde doctor left to talk to Hades and Poseidon, had even asked Percy if he'd be okay with the doc showing Percy's medical files to the adults. Percy didn't care, he just collapsed backward on the bed. What did it matter to him what those two knew about him? Hades would have to learn sooner of later if he was supposed to get Percy out of this whole messed-up situation. He closed his eyes, wanting to finally rest. The knocking on the door interrupted him though.

“Leave me alone! I just want my fucking sleep!”, exclaimed Percy and threw a pillow at the door.

He hadn't slept in two days. Not really, at least. The park wasn't exactly safe enough to sleep peacefully. He really just wanted to sleep and he also really didn't want to deal with any di Angelo or Jackson right now. Someone chuckled and threw the pillow back at him. Percy glared when Poseidon entered. His glare intensified when his biological father sat down next to him.

“Why would Sally ever marry someone who'd hurt you?”, asked Poseidon bluntly.

“We needed money”, shrugged Percy and sat up some. “He had money. Acted nice.”

“Why would you need money? Why didn't she go to her parents?”, asked Poseidon confused.

“Died. In a plane crash when I was two”, replied Percy softly. “And we needed the money because her uncle was dieing. Cancer. Treatment is fucking expensive, but he was the only family she had left. Gabe was acting all kind and generous, supporting her and shit. Asked her to marry him, helped her with uncle Rich and me and everything. They got hitched and Gabe unraveled. The money he had, he had won. He's a gambler. And he's an angry drunk when he loses. Things went downhill after uncle Rich died and Gabe started losing his money... He started beating her, she started working five jobs at once to somehow afford us. Since she's... was... the one with the regular income, she would have ended up paying for Gabe if they'd gotten divorced and the apartment and car still were his. So she stayed. Endured. I don't think she even knew that he beats me too. I never wanted her to feel guilty for it, so I never told her. And I always got into fights in school anyway.”

“He... beat you often...?”, asked Poseidon softly, tracing Percy's black eye.

“Only when he was drunk and lost a game”, shrugged Percy indifferently. “Look, stop with the parental approach. You don't care. You never cared. It's why you chose them over me. So can't we just pretend we're two strangers until I'm out of here?”

“I care, Perseus. I always cared”, whispered Poseidon, looking at Percy with guilty and hurt eyes. “I didn't choose them over you. I mean, sure I chose them, but not _over_ you. I wanted you too. I had Triton, because his mother was in over her head. And Tyson, his mother just dumped him on my doorstep. But your mother, she told me off. _She_ didn't want me in your life. I... I had slept with her, but I'm gay and I think she couldn't forgive me for that, for getting her pregnant but not loving her. She forbid me to contact you, but I wanted to. I know you don't believe me and I know you won't, not for a long time, but just... I care. I love you, Perseus, you're my baby.”

He leaned over and kissed Percy's forehead before standing. Percy glared after him until the adult was gone. And then he just collapsed on the bed and curled together, out like a candle in a second.

 

/break\

 

Poseidon was laying sprawled all over Hades, grunting slightly as his pillow started moving. When Hades seriously tried to push him off, Poseidon swatted at Hades' face. The lawyer chuckled softly. Poseidon groaned and cracked one eye open to glare at the clock.

“Are you out of your mind? It's like... the middle of the night”, groaned Poseidon tired.

“I have a meeting. In the city”, replied Hades, worming his way out from under his lover to get dressed. “I'm not sure how long it will take. Make sure Hazel, Nico and Bianca aren't late to school. Have fun with Tyson and Percy today. Maybe you can do some... bonding? Ti amo, vero amore.”

Poseidon hummed softly when Hades planted a last tender kiss on his lips. The lawyer smiled amused. And then he grabbed his suitcase and left. He had to get going, he didn't want to be stuck in morning traffic on his way to New York. He had thought the whole night about this. The legal struggle of getting guardianship over Percy, the whole trial. Putting _Percy_ through the trial. Through seeing Gabriel again and having to tell in detail about the abuse. No, Hades had a different plan.

“Who the fuck are you?”, slurred a drunk, disgusting man once Hades reached the right address.

“I'm a lawyer. My name is Hades di Angelo”, replied Hades, looking the man up and down, not hiding his disgust. “Are you Mister Ugliano?”

“Yes”, grunted Gabe with a glare. “Whose lawyer?”

“Percy's”, supplied Hades and pushed past Gabe into the tiny apartment, unpacking a pen and some documents, placing them on the table. “You'll have to sign here, here and here.”

“Excuse me?”, asked the bald man, blinking a couple of times, slamming the door.

“When you married Sally, you took over guardianship of Percy. You will sign your rights away and transfer them over to my boyfriend, Percy's biological father”, explained Hades.

“Fags?”, snorted Gabe before bursting into laughter. “Of course the little queer has a faggot daddy!”

Gabe's laughter died doown when Hades stood upright, looming over the drunk man like a dangerous shadow of death. “You will sign these papers now, so Percy is ours. You will never contact him again. You will never show your face around him again.”

“Or else? Are you going to sue me?”, snarled Gabe viciously. “I was his father for eight years. Where has that faggy boyfriend of yours been? You really think the state would give him to you?”

“You _abused_ him. A child. A child who has been in your care”, growled Hades and stepped closer.

“Prove it”, snickered the man. “He's a little shit, always gets in trouble. Try proving that I broke his ribs and not someone he provoked with his shitty manners. Either way, he deserved it, the little shit he is. Someone has to teach the bastard some manners. I get child support from the state for the brat. I'm not giving up on free money. What you going to do about that, big bad lawyer?”

Hades leaned in and whispered. “I will break your leg. And your other leg. And then your left arm. And if you're still not willing to sign, we'll have a problem because I'm running out of limbs to break. So I may be in need of cutting things off. Ears, or things that... dangle...”

“Y—You wouldn't dare”, grunted Gabe in disbelief.

Hades' dark eyes pierced right through Gabe's soul as his hand shot forward and, in one swift movement, he bend the index and middle finger of Gabe's left hand so far back that it cracked loudly and Gabe went down with a curse. Hades straightened his suit.

“I'd recommend you sign the papers before I continue”, offered Hades monotonously “His room?”

Gave growled and pointed into the general direction of what could best be described as a broom closet. Hades took his suitcase and entered the small room, going through the things. He took the few framed pictures of Percy and who Hades assumed to be Sally, as well as those clothes that weren't worn down too badly. There were a few notebooks that looked personal, a couple of DVDs and things that looked important. Even toys, like the bright blue bear sitting in the middle of the pillow on the bed. He stuffed everything he thought Percy would appreciate into the suitcase. By the time he entered the living room again, the papers were signed.

“It was a great pleasure doing business with you, Mister Ugliano”, said Hades, taking the papers. “But be assured that if you ever come close to Percy again, I will be back. And I will do more than just break some of your fingers. I hope I made myself clear, Mister Ugliano.”

Gabe cursed beneath his breath as Hades left. The lawyer smirked like a shark and, once inside his car, he put the suitcase onto the other seat and pulled a dictation machine out, winding it back and hitting the play button while leaning back in the leather seat.

“-- _Try proving that I broke his ribs and not someone he provoked with his shitty manners_.”

The smirk took an even more wicked turn. He had wanted to avoid the legal fight for Percy's sake, but that didn't mean Hades would let this dirty cockroach stay free. He had made an appointment with the prosecutor. With the statement, the medical files and the testimony from Apollo, hopefully Percy could be kept out of the trial at all. Percy was theirs now. His and Poseidon's. And he would be making damn sure that no one would be hurting the boy again. Time to hand in some evidence and talk to the police and the prosecutor, get everything started so this piece of shit would be behind bars and never bother Hades and his family again. He started his car.

 

/break\

 

Without the knowledge of what Hades was doing, his family went about their regular morning day. Meaning everybody fought in the kitchen for the best pieces of sandwiches. Not that they couldn't just _buy_ food, but 'nothing was better than daddy's lunch', so Poseidon found himself busy preparing lunch boxes for six eager and loud children. Not that he wasn't grateful for the distraction. All the loud chattering and the demands and the routine of doing this took his mind off of Percy.

“Is new brother going to school too?”, asked Tyson curiously, his face smeared with chocolate.

Poseidon frowned for a second before Bianca handed Tyson a napkin and helped him getting cleaned up. That girl was a blessing, the incarnation of fussing big sister. Poseidon sighed.

“Not anytime soon, baby boy”, replied Poseidon, his voice soft. “He's... hurt. He needs to rest. Like you when you have the flu. He needs to get better first, you understand that, right?”

“He needs chicken soup”, stated Tyson with a frown. “Makes everything better.”

“Right”, snorted Poseidon, putting the sandwiches into differently colored boxes. Thanatos and Triton were already set to go – they always drove to university with Thanatos' car and since they had to go to the city, they had to get going earlier than the other children. They didn't mind, since they still lived at home even though Hades had offered them to get them an apartment close to the campus. But their family and all their friends were living right here, it was their comfort-zone. Poseidon hoped it could also become Percy's comfort-zone.

“Nico, bambino, do me a favor and drop Tyson off at elementary school before your classes? You have first period off today, don't you? I'd really prefer to... be here when Percy wakes up”, requested Poseidon with a concerned look and pleading eyes turned on Nico.

“You're taking precious time off from my snogging-Jason-period”, countered Nico. “You owe me for this. Like, getting papà off my case next time I want some alone time with Jason.”

“Deal”, chuckled Poseidon with a pained smile.

“Fratellone brings me to school today? Yes!”, exclaimed Tyson with sparkling eyes. “I can show off to Ella! Show her my big brother brings me to school too, like her big sister does!”

“Rachel has to turn everything into a competition”, muttered Nico and grabbed two of the lunch boxes before placing a kiss on Poseidon's cheek. “Tyson, come. Let's get going, fratellino.”

Tyson was attached to his hand in a second, obediently following his big brother out of the house. Poseidon heaved a sigh as the girls too got ready and left. Leaning against the counter, he took a deep breath. He was aware that Hades was being out this early because he was investigating Percy's case. Hades would get birthday sex tonight, even without it being Hades' birthday.


	4. Adjusting to Percy Jackson

Chapter 4: Adjusting to Percy Jackson

 

Percy moaned softly when he woke up. He had never slept better in his life. This bed was like sleeping on clouds. Normally, his neck hurt when he woke up n the morning. Turning a little he looked at the clock on the nightstand. It was already way past noon. He frowned surprised. He had never gotten to sleep longer than six in the morning. Ruffling his hair, he sat up.

“You're awake!”, exclaimed an excited voice right into his ear.

“What the...”, groaned Percy and turned toward Tyson. “What are you doing here, kiddo?”

“I wanna play with you! I'm back from school and daddy is making lunch and Nico has lunch break and he is in my room and we wanted to play, but I want you to play with us too”, rambled Tyson.

“Go away”, grunted Percy and turned around, facing away from Tyson.

“But you're my brother now and I wanna play with you”, declared Tyson confused.

“I said _go away_ ”, growled Percy with a glare. “I'm not your brother!”

The little kid got awfully quiet so Percy turned around. He was stunned when he saw the tears running down the chubby cheeks. The kid was crying. Because of him. He hadn't meant to make the little one cry. He was just... frustrated. When he had woken up, he had thought, just for a split second, that he should go and make breakfast for his mom before she'd leave for work. But then it had caught up with Percy. That his mother was dead. His only family was dead. And then this kid came along, claiming he was Percy's family. How could he be? He had  _no idea_ about Percy's life and all the shit Percy had been through. The crying child sobbed slightly and ran out of the room. Percy didn't care about those people, they weren't his family, would never be. Then why did it hurt so much that he had just made the little one cry? Because, regardless of how much he had ever tried to not care, it was just in his nature to care? Regardless of how often he had wanted to leave, he never could, because he could never abandon his mother, his family. Heaving a sigh, he stood and followed the little kid out of the room and into the room opposite his. A very dark room, with metal-band posters on the walls, black bedsheets and curtains and Mister Handsome laying on the bed, on his stomach, fussing over Tyson. Tyson was sitting on a rug, still crying a little.

“Hey, kiddo”, whispered Percy awkwardly and knelt down in front of Tyson. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you cry. Really. What can I do to make it up to you, kiddo?”

“Stop calling me kiddo”, mumbled Tyson and rubbed his eyes.

“Then what am I _supposed_ to call you?”, sighed Percy in defeat.

“Try Tyson, it's his name”, offered the hot bad-ass on the bed unimpressed.

Percy shot Handsome a glare. He didn't want to say their names, he didn't even want to remember their names. It would mean getting attached and he didn't want that. He would be out of this house as soon as Hades would be through with everything. No need to cry over a lost opportunity then.

“Is okay”, nodded Tyson. “You can call me fratellino, it's what they call me too!”

“Fra... frat... tell... what?”, grunted Percy confused.

“Fratellino”, repeated Nico amused and sat up enough to look at Percy, the foreign word rolling off his tongue in a really hot way. “It's Italian, it means little brother. Every di Angelo is bilingual. I suppose you have a lot to catch up there, but I'm sure my siblings and I can help.”

“I'm not a di Angelo”, snorted Percy and glared at the Italian boy.

“Right. A Jackson, yeah, but since it's the di Angelo mansion, we all go under that”, shrugged Nico.

“I'm not a Jackson either!”, growled Percy defensively, his glare darkening.

“Then what are you?”, countered Nico unimpressed. “An Ugliano, or what?”

“I'm...”, started Percy and wavered, averting his eyes. “No one... I guess... Not important.”

“Mh, makes you all the more special”, whispered Nico and stood to kneel beside Percy and Tyson, his chin on Tyson's head. “Because I've been a lot of places with my family already and I never met anyone who wasn't important. Now, how about we go and swim, Ty?”

“Yey!”, exclaimed Tyson and jumped up, tugging Nico after him.

Percy remained in Nico's room, staring after them in awe. Nico was special. Different. Nico had seen the scars and bruises yesterday and Percy had been sure the Italian would be treating him like some broken glass-doll today. But Nico was just treating him like a normal person. Better even. Percy had to smile a little bit at that. Nico was nice to him. Percy liked being treated that way. Like an equal and not like something broken, nice like a fellow human being, someone who was worth something and not some hopeless delinquent.

 

/break\

 

Poseidon hummed softly as he finished up lunch. He had made a little bit of everything, because he wanted to make Percy's favorite – since it was Percy's first day with them – but he had no idea what Percy's favorite was. When Percy hadn't shown up for breakfast _at all_ , Poseidon had gotten worried, what with the others being off to college and school, so he had checked to see if maybe Percy had run away. But Percy had still been sleeping. Even though it was probably creepy, but Poseidon had spend two hours just sitting on Percy's bed and watching the boy sleep. It was just... That was his baby, his son, the boy he hadn't gotten to meet for sixteen years. He had missed so much and while sitting there, he had tried to picture it. Baby Percy, taking his first steps, smiling and babbling, on his first day in school, when he lost his first tooth... With all those lost moments, time passed fast.

Smiling pleased at the loads of food he had produced, he grabbed a plate with peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches and made his way toward the pool. Nico had told him he and Tyson would be taking a swim. And as much as he tried to cultivate those barbarians, their favorites were still simple sandwiches. When he entered the indoor swimming hall, he could see Tyson in his water wings, laughing loudly while splashing Nico. Poseidon frowned and took a look at the clock.

“Ten more minutes, Nico. You need to get showered and changed before your afternoon classes start”, ordered Poseidon. “I'll leave your sandwiches on the table, but if you want _decent_ food, come to the kitchen, okay boys? And... is... is Perseus awake yet?”

“Last time I saw him, he was in my room”, nodded Nico. “And thanks for the food, dad.”

“No problem, bambino”, replied Poseidon with a short nod. “Don't be late for classes.”

With that, he left the indoor swimming pool again to head for Nico's room. That was good, right? That Perseus already hung out with Nico. Poseidon hoped so. He wanted Percy to feel safe and like he belonged, because he did. He smiled fondly when he found Percy still sitting in front of Nico's bed, with a happy smile on his lips. He hadn't seen Percy happy yet. Defensive, angry, sad. He nearly didn't want to disturb that, because he feared he'd get the angry-defensive treatment again. Still, Percy was thin, he needed some food inside himself.

“Good morning, Perseus”, smiled Poseidon. “I made lunch. Why don't you come down with me?”

“Food?”, asked Percy reluctantly, but also curiously. “Okay. What kind of food?”

“I... may have gone a little overboard...”, admitted Poseidon embarrassed.

Percy made a non-comical sound and followed silently. He snorted amused when he found the whole length of the table in the dining hall filled with so many different kinds of food. Sea-food of all kinds, sausages, eggs in different variations, meat from at least five kinds of animal, salads, plates filled with sandwiches. Even pancakes, real cakes, muffins, brownies. Percy stared surprised.

“What is all of that?”, grunted Percy stunned, inspecting all the food.

“It's for you... Like I said, I went a little overboard”, shrugged Poseidon, blushing. “Sorry.”

“I told you yesterday not to try this parental shit”, snorted Percy and glared.

“Jesus Christ, cut the attitude.”

Percy turned to stare wide-eyed at the Surfer Ken. The blonde with the electric-blue eyes didn't look impressed at all. Poseidon huffed and hit the blonde upside the head playfully.

“Do not talk to any of my children like that, Jason Grace”, warned Poseidon. “Nico's in the pool.”

“You should maybe tell your son not to talk to you like that”, advised Jason and rubbed the back of his head. “If you want him to stay here, you should teach him some manners. I mean, come on, we know he's been through shit, but you're trying to _help_ him, so a little gratitude and less attitude?”

Jason left the dining hall and there was an awkward silence remaining after he left. Percy averted his eyes and took a seat. Poseidon did the same, but his eyes never left his son.

“He's right”, whispered Percy after a moment. “I mean, you _are_ trying to help. I'm sorry I'm being a dick. It's just... what I'm used to. No one's ever nice to me. I don't know how to handle that.”

“I'm... so sorry to hear that, Perseus, honestly. I just... I love you. You're my son.”

“You keep saying that”, snorted Percy and shook his head, stuffing his face with a sandwich.

“No. I'm not saying that, I mean that”, replied Poseidon, desperate to prove he was being honest.

And then he stood, so sudden that the sandwich fell out of Percy's hand. When Poseidon came to stand in front of The Shrine, Percy stood too. He had noticed it yesterday already, but he had other things occupying his mind. There was a commode in the dining hall, with lots of framed pictures. When Percy came to stand beside Poseidon, he saw some of the two oldest on their graduation, the brunette little kid when he was even smaller, others of the kids at different stages of their lives.

“Here”, whispered Poseidon and lifted one picture out of the central row.

The others were standing around them, but there were seven pictures in the center of this family shrine. They were of Hades and Poseidon, but not together, each always holding a baby on them.

“Those are Hades with Thanatos, Bianca, Nico and Hazel after their births respectively”, explained Poseidon, pointing at four of the framed pictures. “And those are me with Triton and Tyson. They're our favorite pictures, since they are the first ones we took with our children. And this... is you.”

He handed Percy the frame he had previously taken. It was Poseidon, a younger Poseidon obviously, holding a grinning baby. The baby was making grabby-motions for Poseidon, as Poseidon tickled his stomach. Poseidon looked so happy and content and proud. Percy stared closely. He recognized himself, he had seen pictures of himself as a baby with Sally, after all.

“But... But...”, stammered Percy, holding the frame tightly.

“You're my son. You've always been my son. I was there when you were born. Your mother and I, we... tried, for a year or so, but... I'm _gay_ and... she was angry and hurt and I know I deserved her anger. She send me away. But I knew you. I held you. I saw you. I love you”, said Poseidon.

Percy took another look. At the commode, not the picture. Where the frame had stood was a clean spot amidst the dust. So Poseidon hadn't just put it there yesterday. He had been a part of their fancy family shrine for... years? But did that really mean he had a... family? A dad? Siblings even?

 

/break\

 

Jason moaned softly, his underarms against the tiles while Nico was thrusting into him, olive-skinned fingers digging into Jason's hips, holding onto him. Jason bucked his hips back some to urge Nico on. They had about five minutes left to finish the shower and get changed. Nico grunted, his face buried in Jason's neck to muffle his moan as he came. Jason followed, spraying his load all over the tiles. He could feel the grin against his neck as Nico pulled out.

“The new kid is giving Poseidon a lot of shit, mh?”, whispered Jason as they sprayed themselves up for a last time before getting changed. “He's full of a lot of fury. He's really angry at Poseidon.”

“He thinks dad abandoned him on purpose, left him stuck with the abusive bastard. I get why he's angry. I just hope he'll understand it soon, that dad loves him”, replied Nico concerned.

“I get that”, grunted Jason and rolled his eyes. “But even so, shouldn't he be _a little_ grateful?”

“Better acting defensive than getting used to something nice that may be taken away again?”, offered Nico a bit confused, cupping Jason's face so they could lock eyes. “I get you don't understand why he doesn't want to be part of our family, but he hasn't known us as long as you have, so he still needs time to adjust. Get used to us.”

“Yeah, yeah”, grunted Jason and leaned against Nico's chest.

“You know what happened yesterday?”, asked Nico in a low voice, changing topics to distract Jason. “He actually called me 'Sex on Legs'. He's kind of... interesting. Weird. Different.”

“Mh... he does have taste”, grinned Jason and stole a kiss. “Such a fitting name. I think I'll keep it. Now come on, Sex on Legs, let's get going before Missus Chase throws a fit because we're late.”

“Right”, agreed Nico and wrapped one arm around Jason's shoulders. “Let's get going.”

 

/break\

 

Percy groaned pleased as he leaned back on the chair. “This was positively delicious.”

“Good”, sighed Poseidon relieved. “Uhm, what did you like best? I was trying to make your favorites, but I didn't know what your favorite was...”

“Blueberry pancakes”, shrugged Percy. “They're my favorites. I like blue food.”

“Blue food”, nodded Poseidon, grinning amused. “Noted down. Good.”

Percy stood and gathered the plates. “Uhm... Where's the kitchen?”

Poseidon gathered a couple of plates himself to lead the way. “You're... Are you going to stay?”

“Until your boyfriend gets this over with”, shrugged Percy and stared around the kitchen. “Wow.”

“And then?”, asked Poseidon softly. “I mean, you want to be on your own, but... What would that mean for you? You'd be alone. Is that really what you want? We could be part of a family. Of our family. I'm your father, you could... get to know me. And your siblings. Even if you don't want to be part of our family, at least try to get to know them. We're all you have left now, Perseus. Please.”

Percy frowned, glaring at the adult. What Poseidon said was right, he was his blood. And Tyson and Triton too. They were family, family he had never met. Should he... give them a chance? To get to know them? What... if they were nice? What if they were like his mom? If things would be the other way around, if he had lived with Poseidon and Hades until now and his mother would show up now and he'd pass out on meeting his wonderful, amazing, caring mother? Maybe meeting Poseidon would turn out to be the first good thing that happened to him since his mother got married to Gabe? He could try to get to know them, maybe they were good people. They looked so happy and full of love on those pictures and during the dinner last year. Could he really be part of that?

“I don't fit in with you guys”, whispered Percy and shook his head, turning away.

He headed back to his room. And Poseidon was following. Percy sat down on the window-sill, staring out of the large window at the gigantic park-like garden, even with a pond. This was a castle, not a house. Not a tiny apartment like the one he had lived in most of his life. Poseidon sat down opposite of him, staring at the garden too. They stayed silent for a moment.

“Bianca had a phase when she joined an all-girls-gang because she felt like she didn't belong here, with Hades, me, Thanatos, Triton, Nico, Tyson. Too much testosterone and sure, Hazel was there, but she was too young”, started Poseidon softly. “Triton had spend nearly every hour of the day in the pool when we first moved in here, because the big house and all the strangers made him feel uncomfortable. When Hazel got enrolled in school, she cried a lot because others made her feel like she didn't belong because of her skin-color, teasing her for not looking like her siblings or Hades. Nico started acting up when he hit puberty, turning against us because he was angry at the world, mostly for the loss of his mother, starting to wish she would still be alive, thinking his life could be different and better if he still had her. Thanatos had a little bit of a crisis when me and Hades got together, not sure how to handle having a gay dad suddenly, and a gay dad dating a servant at that. What I'm trying to say is that _everyone_ feels out of place every now and then. But running away is not a solution, you should stand proud and face the situation, bend the rules and make yourself fit in. You're a fighter, you're still walking with your head held high even after everything you've been through. You don't let things like that beat you down, so... please, please don't run now.”

Percy stared surprised. The way his father's sea-green eyes sparkled, just the same as his own, or as his mother always accused him of. That 'begging kitten look that is impossible to deny', as Sally used to say. He had that from his father, huh? There... was a connection, some kind of connection. Was it worth staying and risking his freedom and his heart to be broken?

“I'll stay”, decided Percy. “For now. But be aware that the very first time someone screws me over, something goes weird, I'll be out of here and you'll never see my face again.”

“Okay”, nodded Poseidon hastily, his eyes hopeful. “Anything. As long as you give me a chance.”

And he hugged Percy, again. Somehow Percy had the feeling he would be getting a lot of hugs if he stayed. But this time, he endured it. That was the moment Hades entered the bedroom, to find Percy and Poseidon hugging. The lawyer smiled a little. This was the kind of progress he had hoped to witness soon. Tyson on his hand ran off to crash into Poseidon and Percy and join the hug, obviously as happy about this as Hades. The boy had been eating every little crumb that was still in the kitchen when Hades arrived home, looking completely happy about all the different kinds of food in there. Hades had a feeling they would be eating left-overs for a while.

“Hey, kiddo”, whispered Percy as he reluctantly ruffled Tyson's hair.

“Does that mean we keep him?”, asked Tyson eagerly, turning toward his dads.

“Don, would you take Ty downstairs? I'd like to have a word with Percy”, requested Hades.

Poseidon nodded and stood, grabbing Tyson under the armpits and carrying him off. Percy glared suspiciously as Hades took the now vacant spot on the bed and emptied a suitcase. This was his stuff. His diary, his photo-album, his favorite CDs and DVDs. Even his blue stuffed bear, the oldest toy he had, well-loved and worn-out. Percy hugged Blue Bell the bear tightly.

“Where did you get my stuff?”, asked Percy in a tiny voice.

“From your old apartment”, replied Hades. “I'm sorry I did this without consulting you first.”

“What... exactly did you do?”, wanted Percy to know, sounding nearly frightened.

Hades pulled a few folded papers out and handed them over to Percy. “I... convinced your stepfather to sign his rights away to Poseidon. Your mother made your father give up his parental rights when they broke up and when she and Ugliano got married, he also got the legal guardianship over you. He signed the papers and since I'm a lawyer, I made sure they're legally binding. He can't force you back there, no one can. He has no rights over you anymore. I know this isn't what you asked of me, but... I have to act in my client's best interest and  _this_ is in your best interest. Declaring you of age would be a long and complicated process. You'd have to prove that you can provide for yourself, you'd need a job and a place to stay. Your grades are already... bad and with a job, you'll lose even more studying time. That's not going to make a good impression either. You've been through a lot and even if it's only for a few months, you should just... lay back and rest some. You can rest here and if you truly think that Poseidon and I are horrible fathers, I can still do as you want. But for now, you need to heal. Physically and emotionally. And for that, you need a stable environment.”

“That's okay”, nodded Percy, staring at his hands. “I talked to... Poseidon? My father? I'm not sure what I'm supposed to call him now... Anyway, he talked me into... staying, for a while. To see if maybe... there is a place in this weird patchwork-family, even for a misfit like me...”

“I think with that, you'll fit in perfectly”, whispered Hades fondly, ruffling Percy's hair. “And just so you know, I won't let your stepfather get away with what he did to you. I'll start on the other legal stuff tomorrow. Transferring you from your old school to our local one, for example. Don't worry, Doctor Solace wrote you a sick note for the next three weeks, to give your bones, bruises and... emotions some time to heal, to give you the chance to settle in here. Nico is one year above you, he still has his notes on the classes from last year, he'll learn with you and catch you up on everything.”

“That's very... kind of him...”, whispered Percy with lowered eyes.

“Oh, he doesn't know it yet”, chuckled Hades amused. “But he'll still do it, don't worry.”

“And... what will happen now...?”, asked Percy concerned.

“You'll rest, as I just told you. We'll get you some new clothes, I only took those that are still intact. You can explore the property, this is your home too now, you're free to go everywhere in and around the mansion. I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't stray too far from the suburbs alone though. Tell us where you go and don't go to New York without company. That's one of our golden rules around here. I'd like for you to just take it slow for now though, rest, sleep, maybe get to know your new siblings better. Bond with Poseidon, he is really giddy to have you here.”

“Yeah, I... noticed that”, snorted Percy and shook his head. “Not sure if he won't be disappointed...”

“You're his _son_. And he missed out on sixteen years with you. You'd have to... murder our puppy in front of Tyson to disappoint Poseidon”, stated Hades good-natured. “Now rest some more.”

Percy nodded numbly, stuck on the part where he would never have to encounter his stepfather again. Hades left him to those thoughts, leaving the room again and closing the door slowly. He headed over to their own bedroom – he was still wearing his coat, he wanted to get changed. In their bedroom, he found Poseidon and Tyson. The little brunette was curled together on Poseidon's lap, Poseidon holding a child's book and reading softly to the little boy.

“Papà? Are we going to keep him?”, asked Tyson hopefully as the Italian entered the bedroom.

“Yes. Yes, we will keep him”, confirmed Hades and put his coat away. “Why don't you go and play some with Hazel? She just came back home too, I'm sure she'd like to hear about your day.”

Tyson's attention-span was that of a fly, whenever he heard of another member of their family who he could spend time with, he was fixed. Jumping out of the bed, he stumbled out of the room, leaving his fathers alone. Poseidon smiled amused as he watched Hades getting changed.

“You're mean, loading Tyson onto Hazel like that”, chided Poseidon lightly.

“She can handle it”, grunted Hades dismissively. “She has enough experience with hyperactive prats. She brought her Leo with her. At least Tyson will have a playmate his own age.”

“You can be so mean”, laughed Poseidon and sat up. “Leo can be a very responsible young man, if he wants to be. He just... tends to be more on the childish and playful side. I think that's loveable.”

“I know, if it wasn't for his parents, you'd adopt him”, muttered Hades beneath his breath.

“Now come here, my big, bad lawyer”, ordered Poseidon and laid his arms around Hades' neck. “I want to hear all dirty details. What did you do? You just told Tyson we'd keep Percy and you sounded pretty confident about it. I know you, you did something, didn't you?”

“Nothing I'd want to concern you with”, murmured Hades, brushing his lips past Poseidon's. “I was just being very... lawyer-y, as you like to put it, and convinced Percy's former stepfather to sign his rights over to you, seeing as you are far better fitted to be Percy's father, what with you actually being Percy's father. He was very considerate and understanding and all too willing to sign.”

“I have a hunch you're not telling me the full truth there”, pointed Poseidon out and cocked one eyebrow in a demanding way. “Hades Pluto di Angelo, the truth. Now.”

“Don't use the middle-name”, whined Hades and made a face. “Okay, okay, he may have accidentally broken two of his fingers. He slipped when he tried to sign the paper.”

“Slipped and broke his fingers on a signature. Right”, snorted Poseidon and rolled his eyes before pulling Hades in for a fierce and passionate kiss, devouring the other's tongue. “I fucking love you.”

“Mh, I should break fingers more often if that turns you on”, mused Hades playfully, his hands wandering. “You know I'd do anything for you. And the kid. He's family now.”

“And that's what I love so much about you”, murmured Poseidon against Hades' lips.

“I know”, replied Hades and dove in for another kiss. “He's safe now. He's ours.”

“Ours”, repeated Poseidon with the smallest hint of a smile and a single tear. “Safe.”

“Let's go and check on our other kids, mh?”, suggested Hades and nudged his lover.


	5. The New Brother/Son

Chapter 5: The New Brother/Son

 

It had been two days of basically being locked into his room and sleeping. Hades had been right, Percy had really needed that rest. Poseidon brought him basically every meal to his room, understanding that Percy needed the solitude to think things over. He didn't need Poseidon, Hades, Thanatos, Triton, Bianca, Nico, Hazel and Tyson around him 24/7. They were too many stranger, it would have been too much. Percy needed to settle with the fact that his mother was dead, that he would never have to return to his abuser again, that he had a father and a whole new family.

“Okay, next question”, grunted Poseidon as he got comfortable on Percy's bed.

Sure, he kept the siblings and Hades away, but Poseidon insisted on some one-on-one time. It still made Percy uncomfortable when Poseidon sat next to him on the bed, because that never ended well in Percy's experience. But so far, Poseidon hadn't hurt him even once, he just sat there and watched how Percy ate while asking random, personal questions. Getting to know Percy.

“Shoot”, grunted Percy back and took a bite of the waffle.

“Favorite childhood cartoon”, prompted Poseidon, his arms behind his head.

“The Little Mermaid”, replied Percy with a faint blush. “Mom and I used to watch it together...”

“Triton liked that too”, laughed Poseidon. “He used to watch it in secret though, because he thought he was too old and the show was too girly. It was kind of adorable though.”

“My turn”, stated Percy, picking at his scrambled eggs. “What are you doing? Like, as a job? Or are you just a stay at home dad, leeching off your rich boyfriend's money?”

“I used to be a surf teacher, that's how I met your mother. But I originally studied marine biology, just... never finished. I wasn't good at sitting still, you know? In the end, I was a nanny. I was the di Angelos' nanny when Hades and I started dating. I continued staying at home and watching the children even after we started dating, because I didn't want a stranger to watch over my children when Hades was really earning enough money for our family, so yeah, I suppose you can call me a stay at home dad”, nodded Poseidon slowly. “So... What about you? Any... girlfriend?”

Percy remained silent for a moment, because talking about movies and books and cartoons was one thing, but now it was getting really personal. “No girlfriend, but I also don't want one.”

“Oh... So... boyfriend then...?”, asked Poseidon slowly.

“It's not your turn, you had your question already”, huffed Percy and hastily stuffed his face with the last sausage. “And the game's over because I'm done eating. There.”

Poseidon sighed a little frustrated, but he was pleased with the outcome of this round. Percy was generally just glad that Poseidon left again. Running his fingers through his hair, he thought. So far, he hadn't really left his bedroom and his bathroom – his new comfort-zone. But today he would, when everybody else would be out of the house. To explore. With that in mind, he collapsed back on the bed and fell asleep again. He was still recovering, after all. And when he woke up again, it was already around noon. Sounded safe enough. It was Wednesday, Triton and Thanatos generally always had classes until five, Bianca had a long day on Wednesdays too, Hazel would be home around two and Nico around three-ish, depending on if he went somewhere with his boyfriend. Great, now Percy felt like a stalker for knowing all of that. But being bed-ridden didn't give him much to do aside from staring out of the window and learning when which di Angelo would go and come back. Groaning a little, he got out of the bed. First stop; kitchen. After all, the kitchen and the dining hall were the only rooms he knew. When he got down however, he could hear voice.

“I don't wanna go groceries shopping, dad! I wanna play!”, whined Tyson softly.

“Tyson, I can't leave you here unsupervised and since Percy loves hot chocolate, we've run out of milk sooner than normally, so I have to go and buy more. And some other stuff too, while I'm at it.”

Poseidon sounded half pleading and half annoyed. Percy slowly approached them in the hall.

“I could... watch Tyson”, offered Percy reluctantly. “You'd probably be faster if you didn't have to take the whiny one with you. I—I can be responsible and watch him, really!”

Percy grew more unsure when he saw the weird look on his father's face, but Poseidon just laughed. “No, I don't doubt that, Perseus. I was just... surprised. Yes, please. Take care of Tyson. I won't be long, I promise. And Hazel will be home soon too. Have fun, my boys.”

Truth was, Poseidon was overjoyed that Percy offered to spend time with Tyson. And so was Tyson. The boy shed his coat five times faster than it had taken him to get into it. He jumped his new big brother and hugged Percy's midsection giddily. Poseidon smiled and left, feeling good.

“Now, what do you want to do... Tyson?”, asked Percy and knelt down next to the younger boy.

Tyson smiled brilliantly when Percy used his name for the first time. The boy grabbed Percy's hand and pulled him along, very eager. Percy stumbled after the boy, trying to listen to his babbling.

“I wanna show you the mansion! Have you seen it yet? Do you wanna?”, offered Tyson eagerly.

“Uhm, no. Not really. Go ahead, show me around”, agreed Percy with a small smile.

Tyson reminded him Percy a lot of himself, when he had been small, before he had met Gabe. Happy, carefree, overly enthusiastic and hyperactive. The first room Tyson showed him was the living room – with a flat-screen bigger than anything Percy had ever seen. Coupled with the six couches, the living room was more like a tiny movie theater. Then again, there were eight people in this family. Nine now, Percy mused. Very impressive, Percy was now actually looking forward to the next 'family movie night' (he had already heard that those were something regular on Sundays). The next room was the library, but Percy didn't even get to properly look at it, because according to Tyson: “Here live the books. They're boring. Come, come!”. Percy made a mental note to check the library out again later, when he didn't have a little child attached to his hand.

“Okay, this is going to be my favorite room in the mansion”, muttered Percy impressed as they reached the indoor pool – including a whirlpool and a sauna. “Is this place for real...?”

“Uhu. It's for winter”, nodded Tyson. “Daddy loves, loves, loves swimming and we have a pond, but it freezes in winter, is why we have a pool, because papà wants daddy happy.”

“Yeah?”, grinned Percy. “And you? You like water too? And your siblings?”

“Ours!”, corrected Tyson stubbornly. “Triton loves water too and me too! Nico is in the swim-team, but Thanatos only likes it when Triton goes swimming too and Hazel and Bianca don't like it.”

“Mh, maybe we could go and swim together when my arm's healed?”, offered Percy.

He lifted his left arm which was still in a case. Tyson nodded happily and tugged on Percy's hand again. The swimming pool was followed by more sport-themed rooms. An in-door tennis-court (who in their right mind needed _that_?). A training hall for martial arts, which would be frequented by Percy, that much was for sure. Another room was locked, Tyson said it was Hades' office, so Percy left it at that. Important and secret legal files should probably be behind locked doors. That was about all there was on the ground-level. First floor was all about the bedrooms. Tyson showed Percy where to find whose bedroom and thankfully enough, all kids had wooden plates with their names on the door, all individualized. Thanatos' had black raven feathers around it, on Triton's was a merman engraved, Bianca's had an arrow and bow crossed engraved on it, Hazel's was decorated with different kinds of gems, Nico's had a wicked looking skull engraved on the wood and Tyson's had cute looking cars on it. Percy was wondering if he'd get a name plate too.

“Come and play with me and Zerby and Mrs. O'Leary, please?”, asked Tyson with large, hazel eyes.

Percy frowned confused and just wanted to ask who Mrs. O'Leary was and what a Zerby was, but by the time they reached the end of the stairs, his question was more or less answered by the two giant hounds jumping them, slobber everywhere as the black beasts barked and growled playfully. One was way taller than the other and broad enough for three, actually.

“We have two _dogs_? How did I not know that until now?”, asked Percy wide-eyed.

“Papà doesn't want them in the bedrooms, they're not allowed upstairs”, explained Tyson.

That was the last thing said before Percy found himself outside, chasing two hyperactive dogs and a hyperactive boy around and through a muddy pond, trying to keep them out of the beautiful flower fields and thinking hard on how to get them clean  _before_ re-entering the house. Especially since the female dog and Tyson had a blast jumping through every dirty patch in the garden, while the male one Percy assumed to be Zerberus was obviously a proper guard dog, sitting by and observing.

 

/break\

 

Hazel had her lips attached to her lover's neck as the petite Latino was being carried off by Frank. It was a little complicated, with her walking backward so she could grope Leo while leaving a hickey, but Frank was strong enough to carry the lightweight and Leo would be the last one to object.

“Milk's empty, which means dad will fuss and go grocery shopping and he'd have to take Tyson with him, so we have about... an hour before Nico gets home”, whispered Hazel softly.

Leo nodded so wildly in agreement, Hazel feared his head would fall off. She loved it, loved having two boyfriends, especially when she got to watch them with each other. They were such a stark contrast; pale, bulky, tall Frank and caramel-skinned, lanky, small Leo. The threesome soon reached the house and Hazel thought they could just continue inside, but then she heard the barking of Mrs. O'Leary and the laughter of Tyson. Letting go of Leo, she followed the sounds. Frank put Leo down when he noticed that something else had distracted Hazel from Leo – he knew that was a nearly impossible thing. Leo craned his neck curiously as he found Tyson, Mrs. O'Leary, Zerberus and a stranger at the pond. The female dog and the child were muddy and messy, the teen looked annoyed and amused as he stood by and patted Zerberus' head.

“Who is this?”, whispered Leo, tugging on Hazel's sleeve, earning the boy's attention.

“I'm the new brother. Name's Percy. Who are you?”, asked Percy challenging, hearing Leo.

Hazel all the while fetched the hose to spray the two muddy rascals down and clean them some.

“I'm Leo. I'm Hazel's boyfriend. That's Frank. He's also her boyfriend. And mine”, stated Leo.

Hazel cocked one eyebrow, watching Percy's reaction with one eye while getting Tyson and Mrs. O'Leary cleaned a little and then ushering them inside. Percy barely shrugged at those news.

“Whatever floats your boat”, replied Percy, cocking one eyebrow of his own. “What? It's none of my business what you're up to in your bedroom. As long as it makes you happy; whatever.”

Hazel smiled a little bit. “Frank, why don't you bring Leo to my room? I'll follow you later.”

Frank nodded, waving at Percy shortly before throwing Leo over his shoulder. The Latino yelped, but didn't protest any more. Percy walked up to Hazel once the other boys disappeared inside.

“What do you want?”, asked Percy bluntly. “You want to talk, don't you?”

“It's the first time I see you outside your room”, pointed Hazel out, smiling a little. “That's nice. Dad had been ecstatic about you deciding to stay for days now, but he worries that you never leave your room. Nico and Triton throw a fuss too, kinda. So... is this you, getting used to us?”

“Kind of”, shrugged Percy, walking back toward the house, Zerberus already obediently at his heel, letting Percy pat his head. “I promised him to try, so I should at least check the property out, huh? Besides, Tyson was a very good and thorough guide.”

“I bet”, laughed Hazel softly. “You know, papà enrolled you at school. You'd be in Frank's and Leo's class. Maybe you could get together with them some time, they could tell you about the classes?”

“I'm actually looking forward to Nico's private tutoring”, declined Percy mischievously.

Hazel raised one eyebrow, but remained silent. Nico had been talking about Percy an awful lot too during the last week. Well, she guessed that Percy needed some kind of attachment figure.

“So... how do you like it so far?”, asked Hazel slowly.

“It's nice. Really freakishly big”, stated Percy, staring at the mansion for a second before entering. “Made me feel a little like Belle exploring the castle. Where's the forbidden room with the rose?”

“Papà's office is the only forbidden room, but that's more because I used to accidentally use his important court files for my drawings when I was little”, laughed Hazel softly.

“He must have been fucking furious”, snorted Percy, face becoming darker at that.

“He framed it”, grinned Hazel. “Said he learned from that mistake. Look... I... I know you're not used to kind father-figures, but... You don't have to be afraid of them. They never hurt either of us and they will never hurt you. The worst punishment I ever received was one week no Leo.”

“One week no Leo?”, repeated Percy a little confused.

“Yeah. He's very prone for making things explode and after one experiment gone bad, dad and papà banished him from coming over for a week. I was so mad at them”, laughed Hazel and shook her head. “I was ten and it was like the worst week in my life!”

“Your life sounds like you had to face real hardships, however did you live through them?”, stated Percy, but without any malice to it, sounding more snarky and teasing (and also very sad).

“By having dad and papà”, was Hazel's honest reply, locking eyes with Percy. “Hey, why don't you take the time to look around a little more, without the hyperactive energy-ball called Tyson attached to your hand? I'll go and get the rascal cleaned up, that takes long enough in itself.”

“That sounds good. Thank you”, nodded Percy and parted way with her inside the mansion.

 

/break\

 

Jason was a little bored when he followed Nico through the di Angelo estate. Jason wanted to fuck. Nico had _promised_ him he'd get to top the next time. But now that they were actually at Nico's place, Nico wanted to go and train. Stupid swordsman idiot boyfriend. Then again, this had an upside too, because Jason would see shirtless, disciplined, sweaty Nico wielding a sword. Though when they reached the training hall, they could hear heavy panting. Frowning confused, they exchanged a look before entering. What they found wasn't half bad. A half-naked, sweaty Percy wielding a sword with such precise concentration that it was nearly scary.

“Hello, Percy”, greeted Nico as he shrugged out of his shirt. “Mind if I join you?”

Percy had a wolfish grin on his lips as he checked Nico out. “Not sure if it would be a fair fight.”

“True. Because of your broken arm. You're probably right”, frowned Nico and took a sword.

“Oh”, snorted Percy amused. “I could beat you with two broken arms. No, because of my experience. I'm state champion. Swordplay was the only thing I really could do to keep me out of our house that Gabe would tolerate because the competitions brought money.”

“State champ?”, questioned Nico intrigued and lifted his sword. “Well, bring it on, bello.”

“Bello?”, repeated Percy and placed the first attack, which Nico dodged perfectly.

“Si. It means 'beauty' in Italian. Still better than Sex on Legs”, explained Nico with a smirk.

Percy blushed brightly at that and nearly missed to dodge. Still, his reflexes got the better out of him so he still countered quite well. Jason took a seat on the bench and got comfortable. Now this was quite the show. Both were sweating and panting as they danced with their swords. This would be saved as later jerk-off material, that much was for sure. Percy was hot. Well-trained, but not over-trained, his body was lean. Covered in scars, yes, but they made him look more like a bad-ass and Jason had a thing for bad-asses (see: Nico the dark rebel bad-ass). And Percy was fierce.

“Had enough?”, panted Nico as Percy paused, supporting his weight on his sword.

“Enough of you not taking me serious”, grunted Percy and straightened. “You're going soft on me. I don't like that. Let's fight again when I'm healed up and you're not holding back?”

“Deal”, grinned Nico and shook Percy's hand. “And sorry, I'm just not comfortable going full-force against someone with a broken arm and broken ribs. Feels unfair to me.”

“So honorable, I feel like a real lady”, snorted Percy with a grin and an eye-roll before turning to Jason. “Or is that too much attitude for you again, Surfer Ken?”

“Surfer Ken?”, spurted Jason, glaring. “Why is he Sex on Leg and I'm Surfer Ken?! I will be taking offense in this! And no, please, as much attitude as you want on that one. He deserves it. Who doesn't deserve it are Hades and Poseidon. You'd be lucky to have them as parents. I'd kiss their feet if they'd offer to adopt me. They're the best thing that could happen to you after all the shit you've been through and they're only trying to help, so I don't like the way you were toward them, okay?”

Percy's expression turned more serious as he looked deep into those electric-blue eyes. There was a spark in them, one he had seen in his own eyes before too. His intuition told him that Jason's family life wasn't as pretty as the suburbia suggested. Then again, pretty houses often housed ugly families.

“Duly noted, Surfer Ken”, replied Percy softly and turned to leave, his shirt over his shoulder.

With that said, Percy headed back to his room to take a well-deserved shower. He was antsy to be back to full health, because Nico could be a fun sparring partner. And it was amusing to have Jason squirm in his seat like that. Back in his room, he dumped his shirt in front of his bed and got straight into the shower. So he was positively in love with this house, that much was for sure. He'd dive into that library later on and he was glad that Hazel had offered to get Tyson bathed so Percy had the free time at his hands to check out the training room and the second the cast would be off, he'd be inside that pool. And he'd raid that kitchen. In that, he could bake all the things their own oven had been too small for. And who he had met of the family so far, well, they didn't seem too bad either.

Hazel was kind, Percy had stayed and observed her with Tyson for a little before checking the training room out. The girl seemed protective of her siblings and she also seemed honest.

The jury was still out for Nico. Percy liked the guy, maybe even a little too much, considering he was supposed to become his new stepbrother. But that piece of eye-candy was just too intriguing. He was handsome, sure. But also witty. And a good sparring partner. Also kind and he had his heart at the right place, judging by the way he had dealt with Percy so far. Still, the guy was a) supposed to become his stepbrother and he b) had a boyfriend who looked like Surfer Ken.

“What are you doing here?”, asked Percy surprised when he got out of his bathroom again.

Had he really not seen the little brunette curled together on his bed? Because Tyson sure looked as though he had been there for a while, all cozy and comfortable. He was holding Blue Bell, Percy's old stuffed bear, looking at him curiously and patting the toy's head.

“What's his name?”, asked Tyson and looked up.

“His name is Blue Bell, because there used to be a blue bell around his neck, but I lost it when I was little”, replied Percy and sat down next to Tyson. “Now, what are you doing here?”

“Hazel is evil”, stated Tyson solemnly. “She makes me bathe. I don't like it. I'm hiding from her.”

“I thought you said you like water?”, chuckled Percy amused, his eyes dancing with mirth.

“Water yes, soap no”, stated Tyson, looking up at him. “I'm tired, but if I nap in my bed, Hazel will catch me and make me bathe. Can I hide with you, please?”

So Tyson hadn't showered yet. He hadn't even gotten changed yet. His clothes were still wet from when Hazel had hosed him and Mrs. O'Leary down and there were still a lot of traces of mud all over the boy. And on Percy's bed, now. Percy turned around and got back into his bathroom (the thing he loved most about this house) and got a bathrobe and a fluffy towel.

“Let's get you out of the wet clothes before you get sick, kiddo”, suggested Percy.

“You're trying to trick me into taking a bath”, frowned Tyson suspiciously.

“Nope. No interest in bathing you. Your parents are responsible for that, I don' care”, replied Percy honestly. “I just don't want you to make my bed any more wet than you already did. And if you let me get you all dried up, you can stay here and hide from evil Hazel. Okay?”

Tyson turned a little and noticed the wet spot beneath him. Blushing, he jumped up and into Percy's arms, letting the older Jackson undress him and dry him off before cuddling him up in the robe.

 

/break\

 

Hades had already taking two ibuprofen before returning home, because when he received the slightly hysteric phone-call from his boyfriend about Tyson being missing, he knew this was going to be a long afternoon. It was the only down-side of having a giant mansion; many, many hiding places for a Tyson who didn't want to take his bath. So since this happened at least once a week, Hades wasn't exactly calling the police. First time this had happened, he had done so and he was _still_ being teased about this by his police contacts, because he had gotten a whole task-force combing through Myosotis Lane while Tyson had been laying curled together under their bed. Needless to say, under their bed was the first place they checked these days.

“Okay, enough with the headless running-around!”, barked Hades out as he entered the house.

He had seen them through the windows already, running around like headless chickens. Within seconds, his family lined up in front of him. Poseidon, Thanatos, Triton, Bianca, Nico, Hazel and the additions of Frank, Leo and Jason. One of these days he would be calling those boys 'son' by accident, they spend so much time over. Jason more so than the other two.

“Why don't you guys pair up and cover the place room by room?”, suggested Hades loudly. “Triton, Thanatos, take the dogs and check the garden. Bianca, Hazel, you go to the library, he dislikes it so he thinks we don't like going there either and go to the sauna and pool and check there too. Frank, Leo, Jason, Nico, you cover the basement. Try not getting lost down there. Poseidon, calm down and come with me. We'll check the upstairs bedrooms, amore.”

He took Poseidon's hand and led the other upstairs. “I shouldn't have left them alone. I left him in Percy's care and Hazel told me, when I came back from the grocery store, that she had taken him from Percy to get him bathed. Nico said he was sparring with Percy when Tyson disappeared from Hazel's care. He's so smitten with Percy, what if Tyson really ran away this time, because he couldn't find Percy because Percy was in the training hall and he thought Percy ran away-”

“Love, please stop projecting your own fear of Percy running away onto our children”, interrupted Hades softly. “Tyson would never run away, the mere concept doesn't make any sense to him, you know how much he loves our family. And by any chance, did someone check Percy's room or at the very least inform Percy that Tyson has disappeared, if Ty is so smitten with Percy?”

“I... I didn't want to bother Percy”, shrugged Poseidon embarrassed. “I didn't know what he'd think, if he'd blame himself or something and I still feel awkward going to his room if I'm not bringing him a meal, I don't want to seem like I'm smothering him... And I was already so grateful and proud that he came out of his room and offered to babysit Tyson, I didn't want to ask too much.”

Hades shook his head affectionately and caressed the back of Poseidon's hand with his thumb as they came to stand in front of Percy's room, knocking on the door and asking Percy if they could come in. When Percy didn't respond after the third time and Poseidon next to him grew nervous, Hades took the liberty of opening the door and slowly entering.

“I'm sorry if we bother you, Percy, but we're looking for Tyson. Have you...”, started Hades.

He stopped when he spotted the two boys on the bed. Poseidon clasped one hand over his mouth to keep from squealing (because it wasn't manly and he so didn't do that). Tyson was wrapped into a way too large bathrobe, clutching the teddy bear Poseidon had given Percy for his birth, while Tyson in return was hugged tightly by Percy, who was curled around the brunette, both boys deep asleep. They were curled together in one corner of the bed, the other wet, with Tyson's wet clothes laying on the ground next to the bed. Poseidon smiled tenderly as he sat down next to his sons.

“They're adorable”, whispered Poseidon, pushing a strand of Percy's hair behind his ear.

“And they both drool in their sleep”, snorted Hades as he took a closer look.

Both boys had their mouths hanging open a little, drooling onto the sheets. He got his phone out and took a picture of the peacefully sleeping boys, sending it to the rest of the family with a little attachment – _Your brothers are fine, go and do your homework_.


	6. Like a Princess in a Castle

Chapter 6: Like a Princess in a Castle

 

“You're the princess and the princess lives in the tower, there”, started Tyson in a no-nonsense voice, pointing at a beautiful tower-like Barbie house. “And that's the evil dragon. The evil dragon always keeps the princess imprisoned. I dunno what dragons want with all the princesses though...”

“Ella not the dragon, Ella the sidekick!”, interrupted a little redhead about Tyson's age.

“Yes, Ella's the sidekick”, nodded Tyson in agreement, lifting a little figure of a redhead with lots of feathers. “Ella is a harpy, she loves harpies. They're pretty feather girls. Ella helps the prince.”

Tyson was speaking slowly, always lifting up the figures he was explaining or showing the places he was talking about. Percy nodded obediently, watching closely and trying to memorize everything. He was holding his own figurine in hand. Literally his. Hades had it made for Tyson, since Tyson owned figures that looked exactly like each of the family members. It made Percy feel like part of this, that Tyson now owned a figure of him too. The only thing that bothered him was that his figure was currently wearing a pink dress with roses.

“Come again why I'm the princess and not the prince”, asked Percy patiently.

“Because Nico is the prince, duh”, huffed Tyson and rolled his eyes as though it was the most obvious thing ever. “Nico's always the prince. And you can't be another prince, because you're a princess. There was an evil dragon who kept you in a tower so dad and papà and we couldn't get you and meet you. You're the princess and you need a prince to save you.”

Percy blinked slowly and stared at the boy. He had known from the start that Tyson was clever – after all he had been the first one to catch on with Percy looking like Poseidon – but that Tyson had so accurately knew what had happened to Percy... Gulping slightly, Percy nodded.

“But then papà should be the prince, shouldn't he?”, interrupted another voice.

Percy turned around a little and saw Jason and Nico standing in the doorway. The handsome Italian was walking up to the trio on the ground. Ella, Tyson's best friend, was contently playing with the little feathered Ella figure and a book. Tyson was shaking his head violently.

“No! Papà is the king and dad is the queen. Papà can't be the prince too”, frowned Tyson.

“Of course he can't, fratellino”, chuckled Nico amused and ruffled Tyson's hair. “How about I play some with you, bambini? Give Percy some time to himself. You've been hogging him, Ty.”

The Italian could only guess that the topic of his stepfather being brought up so lightly must hurt Percy. So far no one from the family had dared to even come close to mentioning anything that had happened before Percy had joined their family. It had been three days now since Percy had started warming up to their family, so everyone was still walking around him on eggshells, afraid he'd run and hide in his room again. Percy nodded stiffly and got up while Nico sat down. Once outside, he found himself accompanied by Jason. At first, he thought it weird, but when they reached Percy's bedroom and Jason decided to join him, Percy was just a bit freaked out.

“Calm down, 'princess'. I just want to talk”, huffed Jason and rolled his eyes.

“Oh shut up, I saw that your figure was wearing a dress too”, countered Percy.

“Well, I'm Nico's boyfriend, so I of course have to be the princess since the prince always gets the princess”, muttered Jason, more than just a little embarrassed. “Anyway, I... I'm sorry.”

Percy cocked one eyebrow and sat down on the window-sill. “What for, Surfer Ken?”

“I shouldn't have been so harsh on you for the way you talked to Hades and Poseidon”, muttered Jason embarrassed, running one hand through his hair. “After you asked me if you were putting too much attitude into your words, Nico asked he what you were talking about. He said I shouldn't have been so harsh on you, what with... well... your mom and what your stepfather did. Guess he's right.”

“Whatever”, shrugged Percy and averted his eyes. “Look, it really... I don't care, dude.”

“But I do”, stated Jason and looked at Percy, tilting Percy's head up so their eyes could lock. “Look, I didn't mean to be rude. I just... You've been through crap, I get that, but for me, it was just... I don't get why you'd be so rude to someone who just wanted to help you.”

“Because in my experience, 'fathers' aren't good”, replied Percy a little harshly.

“What did he do to you?”, asked Jason, not exactly meaning to ask at all. “Uhm. Sorry.”

Percy cocked one eyebrow and stared at the blonde, pulling his legs up and laying his arms around them. He was leaning against the window as he continued to stare at Jason.

“You're actually the first one to ask me that”, stated Percy intrigued. “Why? Why don't they ask?”

“Because they're afraid, I guess”, shrugged Jason, making a face. “Poseidon is _really_ scared that you'll run off again so he kind of forbid everyone to upset you. Guess what they think will upset you. So everyone just... stays clear of the topic, you know?”

“Mh”, nodded Percy, wiggling his nose. “He really wants me to stay, huh?”

“He loves you. You're his son”, pointed Jason out and sat down next to Percy. “So... Don't run?”

Percy snorted amused. “Show me your scars, I'll show you mine. I'm not  _blind_ . There's something up with you. You're over here like... twenty hours a day and you got that... look in your eyes.”

“It's really nothing serious”, muttered Jason and shrugged. “Not like she beats me or shit. She, well my stepmother that is, she likes to throw stuff and call me and my sister names. We're our father's bastards, after our mom died drunk he took us in. Stepmother dearest hates us.”

“That's bad enough”, countered Percy, raising his eyebrows. “How long?”

“Couple of years. We've been with dad for like seven or so years”, shrugged Jason.

“That's... I think that's worse than a beating”, stated Percy, his voice very soft.

“How can you – of everyone – say that?”, asked Jason a little stunned.

“Bruises fade. Broken bones heal. But whenever he told me that my dad didn't stick around because he hated me, because I'm not worth loving, because no one would want _me_... well, that's what really left an imprint”, mumbled Percy, staring at his shoes. “I guess that's why... I was so harsh on Poseidon. Gabe told me so often that Poseidon didn't love me, didn't want me and never would... I just didn't.... I didn't expect Poseidon to... be the way he is.”

“I'm sorry to hear that”, whispered Jason and laid one arm around Percy's shoulders.

Hera liked to call him and his sisters awful things, but... manipulating a little child into thinking that no one could love them? Hera had never been able to do that, because Jason and Thalia had always had each other and they had always known what their mother was and their father had taken them in, so they knew that he at least somewhat cared. Percy leaned into the embrace a little.

“He used to beat me, when he was drunk. Kicked me till my ribs broke. Sometimes with a broken beer bottle. Sometimes with one that wasn't, until it was”, muttered Percy hoarsely. “He only did it when he lost a game, was a gambler. Hated feeling weak because he lost, so he got a power-kick out of making me feel weak. He used to tell me he'd... do terrible things to my mother if I'd ever tell her or if I'd ever run. I couldn't... leave her. She was my only family.”

Percy started shaking a little as the tears came. He had never actually spoken it out loud to someone. Not like that. It was all a little too much. Jason pulled him into a comforting hug, caressing his back until Percy fell asleep from exhaustion after an hour of crying. The blonde was actually pretty happy about this. He had never believed in Poseidon's method of ignoring it in order not to upset Percy, because to get past his demons, Percy had to face them. He needed to talk about it. And Jason felt kind of proud that Percy had entrusted this in him.

 

/break\

 

“So... Sally Ugliano's funeral is in two days”, stated Thanatos slowly as he entered the library.

Triton and Bianca were inside the library, learning math. Or rather, Triton was helping Bianca with her math homework. Both younger di Angelos looked up at the sound of Thanatos' voice.

“Percy's mother. Since his stepfather is in custody, papà took over arranging a funeral for her – the jerk hadn't even retrieved Sally's body yet. So... two more days”, replied Thanatos.

“Poor boy”, whispered Bianca a little upset. “I want to do something for him.”

“Well, he barely owns any clothes, I doubt he owns anything black. We could take him shopping”, suggested Triton, resting his chin on his hand. “Get to know him better.”

Bianca was completely into this idea. She knew that Hazel had already formed some kind of connection to Percy and Tyson, the boy was completely obsessed. So was Nico, apparently. So Bianca stood, pulling her big brothers along as they went to Percy's room. She was a little surprised to find Jason with Percy, sitting on the bed and talking in low voices. Both boys froze.

“Percy! Thanatos is taking us shopping. You'll come with us”, declared Bianca. “You need some decent clothes. I know dad and papà had tried to keep you indoors to recover, but you need some fresh air, you're not Sleeping Beauty, you need to get out of the castle. Get up.”

“She's kind of bossy”, muttered Percy to Jason.

He had woken up about half an hour ago, laying in Jason's lap. He had been embarrassed about it, but Jason had soon distracted him by talking about sports and all kind of stupid things to lighten the mood. Percy liked the blonde, he was really kind. He wasn't sure about those three though. But the way it looked, he didn't have much choice, since Bianca had made that for him. Then again, getting out of the house and the suburbs, that did sound tempting.

“Well, I'll see you tonight at movie night then”, grinned Jason encouragingly, nudging Percy.

“Off we go then”, declared Percy and got up hastily.

 

/break\

 

Percy was exhausted by the time they were in the seventh shop. It was good to be back in New York, even though it also kind of hurt. Memories of his time with his mother passing through these streets flooded his mind, but Triton, Thanatos and Bianca were pretty good at taking his mind off. Bianca was fiercely determined to use him as a dress-up doll; Triton had commented that usually Nico and Hazel were Bianca's favorite dress dolls. Percy would like to watch. During his afternoon with his three new older siblings, he observed the three. Bianca was very protective and also a bit bossy, but all in all a caring sister. With good fashion sense. Thanatos was a bit more of an outsider in the family, probably too much drama and too many people, but he _always_ had a watchful eye on Triton, which Triton didn't seem to notice. Triton acted very tough, but Percy could see a certain brotherly pride which freaked Percy out a bit, but he guessed Triton was just a lot like Poseidon.

“This looks good”, decided Bianca as she whirled Percy around in front of a mirror.

“What do you think, Percy?”, asked Triton. “This the right thing to wear... in two days?”

Percy stiffened. They had been kind and slow when they had told him about his mother's funeral. He was grateful that everyone was so thoughtful of him, but it also annoyed him a little. He wasn't a glass-doll, he won't break when someone mentioned his mother's death or Gabe's abuse.

“I guess so”, shrugged Percy and averted his eyes. “Will Jason come too?”

“Mh?”, grunted Bianca surprised and blinked. “I... Well, he's always attached to Nico and he's practically part of our family, but this is... your decision, Percy. Do you... want him there?”

Percy nodded shortly before turning back to the dressing rooms. He felt like Jason may be the closest to understanding him and honestly, just being held while crying was... new to him. And it had felt good. Safe. The longer Percy stayed with the di Angelos, the more he seemed to be exposed to that feeling. The feeling of safety and as though someone cared for him.

“It's good to hear that you're making friends”, stated Triton from the other side of the cabin.

Percy got changed and rolled his eyes. What were they expecting of him? He was barely let out of Poseidon's watchful and concerned eyes and he had barely left his room. When was he supposed to make friends? It was stressful enough to get to know his new, large family better.

“When do you think you'll attend school? You've already missed a lot”, questioned Bianca.

Typical concerned big sister, thought Percy to himself. “Two more weeks. I want some... peace after my mom's funeral and I want to wait until my ribs and arm are healed up.”

“You could as well attend with broken bones”, stated Thanatos skeptically.

“In my experience, new schools are never good news, so I'd rather be healed up to...”, started Percy.

“To defend yourself?”, guessed Triton softly, grasping Percy's shoulder as the younger Jackson joined them again. “You don't have to. Homer High is a good school, Principal Brunner makes sure that bullies are taken care of. And even if, I'm sure Nico and Bianca will protect you.”

“With all due respect, Triton”, started Percy with a glare. “But I've fought my own battles all my life. I don't need older siblings to defend me. Just because I'm staying with you now doesn't mean I'll get all coddled and spoiled all of a sudden, you hear me?”

“Alright, alright”, grunted Triton with a glare of his own. “I wasn't suggesting that you hide behind them, I just mean that... you're not alone anymore, Percy. We share your battles now.”

Percy stared deep into those eyes so startling similar to his own and saw the honesty in them. Those di Angelos and Jacksons were weird. They cared so much. Was this what came with growing up with two loving parents who had  _time_ to play with you and never had to worry if buying that toy for their child would mean not having food on the table for a week?

“How about Thanatos goes and pays and we go and eat some ice-cream?”, asked Bianca lightly.

She tried to lighten the mood again, because it had become a little too serious and gloomy for her taste. She wanted Percy's first trip out with the family to be  _fun_ . The prospect of ice got the boys.

 

/break\

 

Hades grunted as he watched Poseidon pace the living room. When Bianca had send him a message that she would be going shopping with Triton, Thanatos and Percy, he had notified Poseidon. Needless to say, his boyfriend freaked out. Ever since Hades had returned from work, he had been watching Poseidon pace. It was still the fear that Percy would up and run, but Poseidon was also worried that now that he attempted to bond with his siblings, Percy may not like them, or they may not like Percy. Hades smiled a little as his eyes trailed after Poseidon. It was cute how concerned Poseidon was, though Hades also understood it. Having a baby being born into a family was different than just sitting a sixteen years old into a made nest and expecting the different personalities to get along and like each other. It was a risky gamble.

“Daddy! Watch out!”, exclaimed Tyson, interrupting Hades' thoughts and Poseidon's pacing.

“Oh dear, I'm sorry, baby boy”, sighed Poseidon with a frown. “I didn't mean to...”

He knelt down next to Tyson and what used to be a wooden block castle that Nico and Tyson had spend an hour building. Just now, Ella and Tyson had been playing with the castle, while Nico was upstairs in his room with Jason. That was until Poseidon accidentally stepped onto it.

“Is okay, daddy”, nodded Tyson and hugged his father. “You're worried about Percy.”

“I... Yes, I am”, confirmed Poseidon slowly, a little surprised.

“You're worried another evil dragon will take Percy away, but you can't keep Percy in this castle just to keep other dragons from locking him up in another castle”, stated Tyson.

Poseidon nodded stiffly, cursing that his baby was so clever. “You're... You're right, Tyson.”

“Sides, Nico will protect him now!”, declared Tyson with a broad and happy smile.

“Who am I protecting this time? We haven't dressed Reyna up in a princess dress again to act out one of Ty's games again, because I doubt the bruises from the last time she had to play princess healed properly yet!”, stated Nico as him and Jason joined them.

They did have a lot of costumes because as much as Tyson loved playing with his dolls, Bianca loved playing with the people. Enacting the stories Tyson thought up. They had started doing that when Tyson had been very sick and had to stay in bed for two weeks. It had driven the ADHD boy mad, so they had decided to entertain him like that. Not every volunteer was as happy about that.

“Why's no one here? What about family movie night?”, questioned Jason confused.

“Sorry we're late! Leo distracted us!”, exclaimed Hazel as she ran past Jason and Nico. “Heh?”

Leo and Frank were close at her heels. As always, much to Hades' dismay. The threesome looked around a little confused. As confused as Jason. Nico had already taken his place on their couch, beckoning Jason over. Leo, Frank and Hazel took their own couch, still looking around.

“Where is everyone?”, asked Hazel after another moment.

“They're out shopping. We're waiting for them. How about you get the snacks instead of just sitting there with wide eyes?”, suggested Hades amused, raising one eyebrow.

Poseidon was by now laying on the ground, helping Ella and Tyson rebuild the castle. The boys and Hazel left again for the kitchen to make popcorn, sandwiches and get Tortillas and chips. By the time the table in the middle of the four couches was set with drinks and snacks, they could finally hear the chatter of the new arrivals. Seconds later and they were joined by the other four.

“What's all of this?”, asked Percy unsure as he had all those eyes on himself.

“Movie night”, replied Bianca and dumped their bags on the floor. “Sorry we're late, but Triton really wanted to buy Percy blue cotton candy and then Percy had a stomach ache – seriously, men are just big children, aren't you? All that ice cream and then cotton candy to top it all off?”

“It was delicious”, complained Percy with the faintest blush.

“Come, come. Take your seats, you kept us waiting long enough”, ordered Hades with a grunt.

Poseidon was carrying Tyson over to Hades and sat down next to his boyfriend, his eyes trained on Percy, watching for any sign of discomfort, but it looked like Percy had a genuinely happy day. Bianca, Thanatos and Triton sat down together on the fourth couch, while Hazel was curled together on Frank's lap, with Leo against her chest on the couch next to it. Percy was just standing in the door, looking like a lost dog that had been left alone on the street.

“Big brother! Come here!”, ordered Tyson, struggling between his dad and Ella.

The couch was a little cramped with two adults and the two small children. Leo was sitting up eagerly as he stared over at Percy, beckoning the other boy to them. Triton, Thanatos and Bianca were sitting close together to leave room too. Percy had no idea where to go, because apparently everyone wanted him. That was new for him. Biting his lips, he walked over to Nico and Jason, looking at them unsure. Nico smiled and scooted closer to Jason to make room for Percy.

“You had fun today, children?”, asked Hades as he turned on the TV.

“Lots!”, exclaimed Bianca. “He's a far more obedient dress-up doll than Nico. And his skin-complexion offers a completely new array of clothes to try out.”

“She's scary”, commented Percy lowly. “But yeah, I guess... It was fun.”

“What are we watching today?”, asked Hazel. “Tell me _Princess and the Frog_ , please.”

“No, today is... special”, smirked Hades and pressed play. “Lean back and enjoy.”

Percy froze up at what was on the big screen. Him. He was, when he had been eight, on his first swordplay competition. The jurors were swooning over the adorable little boy.

“What's that?”, grunted Nico confused, eyes flickering between the video and the frozen Percy.

“Well, when you mentioned that Percy was state champion, I did some digging. You know that nowadays, everything finds its way onto the internet. My secretary spend all day downloading videos from the internet, perhaps not all that legal, but since we don't have any own home videos of Percy, I suppose the cause is greater than the felony”, stated Hades with a smirk.

“That's embarrassing”, countered Percy and blushed a little as the whole room squealed.

Little Percy on the video had just gotten his trophy and was running up to his mommy, all wide-eyed and with flushed cheeks, giggling delighted. It was just so adorable, but also painful. At least for Poseidon. He had to think how he should have been there too, to hug his boy and praise him.

“Don't worry, we'll make up for that by watching embarrassing home videos of your siblings later on too. Today is all about the most memorable videos of our family” clarified Hades.

After about an hour and eight years of competitions and lots of cooing over the adorableness of Percy Jackson, Percy was curled together against Nico's side, with Nico's arm around his shoulders. It felt nice and comfortable. And Nico didn't seem to mind. Neither did Jason, who kept pushing popcorn and various other snacks over to Percy.

“ _Percy Ugliano, this is the third time in a row that you win the state championships!_ ”, stated a reporter on the TV, some bright-eyed blonde. “ _Now, what our viewers surely want to know is, what future plans does a swordsman like you have? You're sixteen, after all. College choices?_ ”

Percy on the screen blushed a little, still sweaty from his last fight. “ _Marine biology. Swordplay is fun and all, but once I've finished high school, I want to study to become a vet, for dolphins and sharks and such. The animals who don't have an owner taking care of them need help too._ ”

“ _So handsome, a good swordsman and he loves the animals. You surely break a lot of hearts!_ ”

TV-Percy and real Percy both blushed at once. Poseidon turned to look at his son fondly.

“Marine biology, mh?”, asked Poseidon softly, sounding proud.

“I love the ocean and its creatures”, shrugged Percy. “I want to help them. It was more like a dream-thing anyway, never really believed I'd be able to afford college. Besides, I couldn't leave mom.”

“Well, I don't think affording it is a problem anymore”, stated Hades. “Our children get the best education possible and whatever they need to achieve their dreams.”

Percy bit his lips and averted his eyes. Why were those people so weird? Why would Hades offer him such a thing? He wasn't even related to Percy. Just because of Poseidon?

“Okay, next up is Nico on his first swimming competition!”, declared Poseidon to lighten the mood.

Nico actually blushed a little in embarrassment, but Percy surely enjoyed the image of a Nico in swimming shorts, all wet and hot. Following it was a video of Bianca maybe a year younger than now, on an archery competition, together with a girl the others told him was named Thalia Grace; Jason's older sister. Hazel and Leo two years prior, partnered up at a science fair, which basically blew up thanks to Leo's invention. Triton doing some aquatic ballet – Percy had not expected that. Thanatos' graduation, Triton's graduation. Videos of all the kids on their first school days. Tyson on a bake-sale with Poseidon, which was completely adorable. Other films were of various family vacations – Egypt, Turkey, Paris, various cities in Italy, Canada, the Highlands.

“You've basically been everywhere, huh?”, commented Percy as he watched a fifteen-years-old Nico helping five-years-old Tyson to float in the pool of their hotel in Hawaii.

“What good is a lot of money if you don't spend it on the nice things? We go to at least two different places each year. We always decide together where to go. Any suggestions get put into the blue jar on the kitchen-counter, so if there's a place you really want to go...”, replied Hades slowly.

“I don't know. I never left New York City, aside for competitions”, stated Percy with a frown.

Which turned out to be the wrong thing to say, because suddenly everyone had an opinion and tried to convince Percy of the _perfect_ place to spend his very first vacation. They were all quite eager and loud and made Percy smile at that. They didn't try to convince him because they wanted to go there, but because they loved that place and wanted him to enjoy it too. Leo was rambling on about Pompeii and a volcano, with Tyson wildly agreeing. Frank was trying to convince him that Canada was perfect. Hazel was talking about New Orleans. Triton suggested a cruise. Jason was determined they should go to Rome. Thanatos was all in for Venice, the city of their family's origin apparently. Nico though, he was suggesting Hawaii, because he had seen the sparkling of Percy's eyes when they had watched the video of their Hawaii-trip from two years ago.

“I'd like to go to London”, stated Percy softly. “It always looks awesome in _Doctor Who_ ”

That being said, the next long ramble started; apparently everyone also had an opinion to that.


	7. The End and the Beginning

Chapter 7: The End and the Beginning

 

Somehow it felt as though Percy was getting ready for his own funeral. The suit was expensive and it also felt that way. It felt tight and heavy. He was wearing something that was more expensive than the apartment he used to grow up in. It was unsettling.

“Let me help you with that.”

Percy nearly jumped into the air at the sudden voice. Bianca chuckled and walked up to him and started to tie the bow-tie around Percy's neck. It was red. Bianca was a bit thrown off by this, but Percy didn't offer any explanation, so she didn't pry. Bianca straightened the bow-tie.

“Now come, everybody else is already waiting downstairs”, whispered Bianca softly.

“Everybody...?”, asked Percy unsure, biting his lips.

“Dad, papà, Triton, Thanatos, Hazel, Nico, Tyson and Jason”, nodded Bianca slowly.

Percy sighed in relief. He had felt a little awkward about inviting Jason to his mother's funeral. After all, why should the other boy want to attend the funeral of someone he didn't know? Taking a deep breath, he followed Bianca downstairs. Everybody was dressed in black and especially Nico and Hades kind of looked like mafia members. They all looked like they wanted to comfort him, to say something or do something, but they didn't know what. So Percy just walked up to them and squeezed in between Nico and Jason. The couple linked their fingers behind Percy's back, guiding the younger boy outside. It was a good thing the stretch limo of the di Angelos was long. Thanatos took the seat behind the wheel – he loved that thing and he loved driving, so he found the notion of paying someone to drive their car utterly ridiculous. Triton took the passenger seat. Percy sat between Jason and Nico, feeling safe there. Hades, Poseidon and Tyson sat opposite them and Hazel sat with Bianca. Biting his lips again, Percy shyly took Jason's hand.

“How did you cope with losing your mother?”, asked Percy softly, looking at the blonde.

“I think it was... different for me, compared to you. Your mom loved you and was there for you. Mine was constantly drunk and cursing my dad. She never really cared for Thals and me”, replied Jason, equally soft. “Don't get me wrong, she was my mom and I loved her. But, well, I still had Thalia and she had been... more of a mother to me than our mother had. She basically raised me, so... it wasn't as much of the loss of a mother to me.”

Percy frowned and nodded before turning his eyes onto his lap. “What about you guys? I mean... I... You're only living with your fathers. So what happened to your... mothers? I—If I may... ask?”

Nico, Bianca, Hazel and even Triton turned to look at him surprised and Percy felt like shrinking.

“No, you deserve to know, Percy”, interrupted Hades softly, looking at his children for conformation and having them all nod slowly. “Thanatos' mother died during childbirth... together with his twin. It was a complicated birth and only he did make it. Bianca's and Nico's mother Maria, I met her when I returned to Italy after I lost my first wife... Maria got hit by lightning when both of them were still very small, Nico was barely a year old and Bianca was only three. It was... tragic and made me return to the US, where I met Hazel's mother Marie in New Orleans. Even while she was pregnant with Hazel, I noticed that all she wanted was my money. After Hazel's birth, I fought hard for custody, to keep my child. Then we moved here, my children and I.”

“Triton's mother and I, well, it was a one-night-stand. I had a lot of those with women when I had a crisis about my sexuality, trying to be straight. I didn't know about Triton for years”, continued Poseidon. “Then I met your mother and we tried to work, I already explained that to you. Triton's mother eventually came around and asked me to take Triton when he was young, because her new husband wasn't fond of the idea of raising a bastard-child. Only when Tyson's mother... she... Honestly, I have no idea who she is. She just left him at my doorstep when he was a baby. It woke me up, made me realize how irresponsible I was behaving. That was when I came to terms with being gay, with truly being gay. Is that answer enough?”

“N—Not really”, replied Percy honestly and turned toward his kind-of-siblings.

Amusingly, the first one to answer was Tyson. “I don't need a mommy, I have a daddy and a papà who love me and lots of siblings and I love them all. Is okay like that.”

Percy smiled a little at that and relaxed against the backrest, listening to the other's answers.

“I... tried to contact her once before, but she didn't even want contact. She admitted to only having me to get money out of papà. I'm fine not knowing her”, stated Hazel firmly, still looking kind of upset. “I have dad and papà, just like Tyson says. Why miss someone who doesn't want me?”

“I sometimes imagine how it used to be. Papà says that it's mostly my imagination, since I was only three, but I cling to those memories, whether they're real or not”, whispered Bianca sadly.

“I... often wonder”, admitted Nico and averted his eyes. “It's why Poseidon and I didn't get along at first, because I was angry. I felt like papà was taking my chance of ever getting a mamma away by being with a man. I learned with the time that having two fathers is all I really need. I still wonder what she was like, what she would have been like as my mother.”

“I visit my mother every other weekend”, continued Triton, looking at Percy softly.

“But she gave you away”, countered Percy confused. “I mean... she... didn't want you?”

“She did, but she loved her boyfriend. It wasn't that she chose him over me, I was a really troubled child and I picked a lot of fights, especially with him. She just couldn't take it anymore. When I came to dad, I... well, I changed. I realized that I was just chasing people away”, shrugged Triton. “My stepfather and I still don't get along though. But I see my mother on a regular base.”

“I don't know anything else”, ended Thanatos. “I never met her. Papà is all I know and I don't see the point in longing for impossible what-ifs. I have a great family that I love, that's enough.”

Percy nodded slowly and relaxed a little. He leaned against Nico's side, head on Nico's shoulder. The Italian was really, really comfortable. Suddenly, a thought crossed his mind, making him frown.

“Where? I mean, y—you put up the funeral. Where will she be buried?”, asked Percy concerned.

“With her family”, assured Hades softly. “I did my research before I went to work, Percy.”

“So... what does that mean?”, asked Jason curiously. “Which graveyard in New York will it be?”

“The one in Barryville”, smiled Percy faintly. “It's my mom's hometown. I was born there too, actually. We moved to New York City only after my grandparents died and we moved in with uncle Rich. It's a small place, my grandparents owned a farm there.”

“Aw, I would have liked for you to grow up as a farmboy instead of a cityboy”, pouted Jason. “You would look adorable all as a little cowboy and stuff.”

Percy huffed and flushed the slightest bit. “Occasionally, yes. Before my mother married Gabe, we often visited. I have a few friends left there. Get comfortable, it's a two hour drive. At least.”

“What about your other friends?”, asked Jason suddenly.

“Mh?”, grunted Percy confused and turned to look at the blonde, buried into Nico's embrace.

“I mean, ever since you moved in with the di Angelos, did you even contact them? They must be worried out of their mind. Friends from the city, I mean”, elaborated the blonde.

“I don't have friends”, shrugged Percy and turned away.

“I find that hard to believe”, snorted Triton. “You're like a kicked puppy. How not everyone just wants to pick you up and cuddle you is beyond my comprehension.”

“I've been changing schools every year, some years even twice or trice because I get into a lot of trouble. At some point, I just really didn't see a reason to try anymore. Besides, with Gabe... Finding friends would mean to get close to someone and letting someone get close would mean they may notice and I couldn't risk that. I haven't made any friends in years”, shrugged Percy with a glare.

“Well, that's going to change now”, declared Jason and wrapped one arm around Percy's shoulders.

Percy smiled faintly and leaned into the embrace. He had his doubts though. He didn't fit in with this suburban paradise. Why should they want to befriend him?

 

/break\

 

Poseidon and the others were setting chairs and preparing the last touches while Percy was with Hades. It was up to him to decide what to engrave on the headstone and what headstone to pick. They had arrived hours before the actual funeral to get those things finished.

“It's a beautiful quote”, noted Hades, one hand on Percy's shoulder as they joined them again.

“How much longer do we have?”, asked Percy softly.

“Two hours until the funeral starts”, replied the lawyer. “Why? Is there something you want to do?”

Percy just shrugged and averted his eyes. Jason and Nico exchanged a look and grinned.

“Haze, Bia, Ty. You want to come along? We're forcing Percy to show us the town”, declared Nico.

Taking Percy's mind off the pending funeral, maybe making him dwell in nice memories for a change. Tyson was in right away, yelping and running up to Percy eagerly. Hazel and Bianca joined them too. Percy turned toward the fathers questioningly, but Poseidon just nodded.

“Triton, Thanatos, Hades and I will take care of everything”, promised Poseidon.

The teens and Tyson left. The town was small. It was kind of weird for the di Angelos, because they had never really been anywhere aside from big cities. Everyone on the streets greeted Percy by name, still remembering the little boy from the old days and knowing about Sally's funeral. All said they would see him later on. Only when they reached the outskirts did it calm down a little. They were walking toward a farm, Bianca and Hazel chatting animatedly.

“Where are we going?”, asked Jason curiously, watching how Tyson dashed off to an old farm.

“That's it. My grandparents' farm”, replied Percy with a small nod. “It's been abandoned since my mother moved to New York with me. It's... whenever mom and I visited the town, we'd go here, sneak into the barn and... no, just come with me. I'll show you.”

He too dashed off, running after Tyson. The other four exchanged a look and followed. Inside the barn, Percy climbed an old ladder to get to the upper level. Tyson was the first to follow and as the others joined them, they understood. From the window, they had the perfect view, facing the town and overseeing it all. It was so beautiful and peaceful. Percy sat down, with Tyson on his lap, Jason and Nico to his left and Hazel and Bianca on his right.

“We'd just sit here and watch the town. Dream of how it could have been. If her parents wouldn't have died, I'd have grown up here with her, with them. I always wanted that”, whispered Percy. “I still do. One day, I don't care how long it will take me, one day I'll move back here.”

“If the farm doesn't get sold until then”, pointed Bianca out.

“It's mine”, replied Percy nonchalantly.

“What do you mean?”, asked Hazel stunned. “It's yours?”

“When my grandparents died, it became my mother's and she has had it in her testament, always, that... after her death, it would go to me. She wanted to sell it, when uncle Rich was dieing of cancer, but then she met Gabe and he helped her with the hospital bills. She never told him about the farm, I guess that's the only reason why he never bugged her into selling it. Mom knew that I always dreamed of living here one day, which is why she never sold it, not even when money was tight. She rather took another job than to do that”, explained Percy, his voice hoarse.

“Linwood!”, called someone very loudly all of a sudden. “I knew we'd find you here!”

There were two boys, a redhead and a brunette, both tall and muscular. They were waving at the di Angelos, or more precisely at Percy. Percy grinned and waved back. He stood, after getting Tyson off his lap, and made his way back down. The others frowned confused and followed, once more. Jason tugged a little on Nico's hand, looking at him confused. The Italian just shrugged.

“Why did the boy call you Linwood, big brother?”, asked Tyson innocently.

They had left the barn and stood in front of the farm. Percy motioned up to the worn wooden shield. The paint was barely visible anymore, but it read _Linwood Farm_. Percy grinned a little.

“My mother's maiden name. It's her parents' farm. And those are Mark and Sherman”, introduced Percy before he went to get hugged by the two other boys. “Guys, that's my new... family.”

Nico glared fiercely at the intimacy between Percy and the two guys. Damn, he was  _jealous_ . He hated that feeling, but it was hard to suppress, especially since Percy wasn't his. And it got worse with the time they spend with the two other boys. But it made Percy happy. Then again, that exactly was what made Nico so jealous. They were playing soccer, Mark, Sherman, Percy and Tyson on one team, Hazel, Bianca, Jason and Nico on the other. It managed to take Percy's mind off of things.

 

/break\

 

It was about two hours after the children had left that Poseidon found himself standing in the halls of the Linwood Farm. A faint smile laid on his lips as old memories flooded him. His fingers traced faded wallpapers from the sixties as he walked through the halls to the room labeled as _Percy_.

“Perseus”, whispered Poseidon softly. “It's time to go.”

Percy jumped a little from where he stood in front of an old, dusty crib. “How did you find us?”

“It... wasn't hard to guess where you would go”, replied Poseidon as he walked up to his son. “After all, I was... here before too. When I was still with your mother. We were both young and foolish and her parents supported us. I lived here, for a couple of months. I still remember... you were such a perfect, little baby, laying in your crib, giggling and grabbing for the wind-chimes. Oh, you were such a cute baby, always laughing and smiling. You nearly never cried, you know? And even if, the dolphins always calmed you down. Or your mother's singing, regardless of how bad it was.”

Poseidon laughed softly. There was a wind-chime with dolphins hanging over the crib. Percy took one of the delicate glass-dolphins in his hand, looking at it closely. He let go of it and left the room, stopping at the door. There was a wooden plate, engraved with his name and with shells glued to it.

“Can we... take this with us for... my room?”, asked Percy shyly.

“Of course, Perseus”, smiled Poseidon kindly and took it off the door.

“Thanks...”, whispered Percy softly.

They left and made their way back to the graveyard. He had send the others to go already before going inside and getting Percy, so by the time father and son reached the graveyard, everyone else from their family was already gathered. It was a tedious task to greet everyone and say 'thank you' for every time someone told him how sorry they were, but as the only family Sally had left, it was up to Percy to do so. Basically the whole town had gathered, but Poseidon had a feeling that Percy was still waiting for someone, even as the priest started his speech.

“Perseus? Who are you looking for?”, whispered Poseidon.

Poseidon and Hades stood right behind Percy, with the other children flanking them. “G—Gabe.”

Hades rested one hand on Percy's shoulder, squeezing a little. “He's under arrest, couldn't pay bail. He won't show his face here, I made sure of that. You have a restraining order against him.”

Percy turned large eyes on Hades and gulped slightly, unsure what to say. “T... Thank you.”

 

/break\

 

The main part was over and everyone had gathered around the buffet by now. Poseidon and Hades sat together with a farmer couple named Hypnos and Iris, as well as the local bar owner Dionysus, chatting away. Thanatos and Triton were talking to Dionysus' oldest son Dakota, while Dakota's younger brothers Castor and Pollux were blatantly flirting with Hazel and Bianca. On a funeral. Then again, the two boys looked kind of drunk, so there was that. Percy had spend a while with Sherman, Mark and his other friends from town – Lee and Michael, as well as the sons of Iris and Hypnos; Butch and Clovis. Tyson sat under a table, conspiring with two younger boys around his age named Christopher and Harley, the sons of the local mechanic. Jason frowned as he looked around to account for the di Angelos, because Percy wasn't with the other teenage boys anymore.

“Where's Percy?”, asked Nico worried.

Nico's eyes snapped over to Mark and Sherman right away, but the two boys were still here. Frowning confused, Nico took Jason's hand. Percy had barely spoken a word since they had reached the graveyard, since the ceremony had started nothing at all. Even with the other teenagers from town, Percy had mainly just listened to them bringing him up to speed on what was going on in the town. Nico didn't like this. He didn't know Percy well enough, so what if the boy was going to do something stupid now? His mother's funeral tipping him off, bringing everything too close? The couple sneaked away from the assembly. Maybe Percy was back at the farm? But before they got far, they saw Percy standing in front of the gravestone. Sighing relieved, Nico and Jason walked up to Percy slowly. The headstone was white marble, with a simple engraving.

_Sally Linwood_

_Beloved Mother, Daughter and Niece_

_We're All Stories In The End._

_Just Make It A Good One._

There was a red fez resting on top of the headstone, one that hadn't been there before. Nico and Jason came to stand on either side from Percy, silently. They remained that way for a while.

“What does the fez mean?”, asked Jason confused after a while.

“It's... symbolic. The quote, it's from _Doctor Who_. The eleventh Doctor. Just like the red fez and the red bow-tie. I... like the quote, a lot. I thought it'd fit”, replied Percy hoarsely.

“Doctor Who?”, questioned Jason with a frown. “I mean, favorite show and all, okay, but... on her headstone? Isn't that... sort of... inappropriate?”

“It was my grandmother's favorite show. She used to watch it with my mother. My mom worked a lot when I was small, but when they started the new series in 2005, my mother... she never failed to make the time to watch it with me, even if she had to record it. That one hour, we'd sit together, just the two of us, and everything would feel... normal. Good. It made her talk about her parents, it made her laugh and remember them and it made me feel like I had a whole family, through my mother's memories. Doctor Who was our... thing. Gabe didn't care, he found it ridiculous, he willingly left the living room when it was on. It was just mom and me. It was safe and good and warm and... and ours. I don't care if TV shows shouldn't go on a headstone, it's what was important to _us_.”

“Oh...”, nodded Jason stiffly. “Sorry. I didn't know. I... I don't know what to say.”

“I don't know what to feel, so I guess it's okay”, shrugged Percy.

“Let's get back to the others”, suggested Nico softly. “It's getting chilly and dark. Come on, it won't be the last time you ever visit her grave. We'll drop by again.”

He laid one arm around Percy's waist, guiding him away from the gravestone. Percy hadn't eaten a thing so far today. He had spend breakfast in his room and when they had arrived in Barryville, the teens and Tyson had eaten lunch in a diner before going to the farm, but Percy had merely drunken a milkshake. And now he hadn't touched the buffet so far either. It was time to get some food into the boy, regardless of how upset he was about his mother's death, he needed to eat.

 

/break\

 

They were sitting in the limo again by the time the moon was already out. Hazel was typing on her cellphone, informing her boyfriends that they were on their way back, Bianca was reading a book, Tyson was laying curled together on Hades' lap, deep asleep. This time around, Triton was driving while Thanatos sat on the passenger seat. Jason and Nico were, again, sitting on either side of Percy.

“Those two boys that were all over you the whole time, who were they?”, grunted Hades.

“Mark and Sherman? They were good friends, whenever mom and I would come to town. We played a lot when we were little kids. With wooden swords, pretending we're gladiators. Why?”

“So no... ex-boyfriends?”, interrogated Hades, also raising the other eyebrow.

“Urgh. This is what having a father feels like, eh?”, groaned Percy, leaning his head back. “No. They're no ex-boyfriends. I don't have any exes. Or current boyfriends, for that matter.”

Jason slumped a little in relief. He had been jealous too, but he was better at covering it up than Nico. That and he thought that Percy could use every comfort he could get today. But it had irked him immensely how overly friendly those two farmboys had acted with Percy. It was probably not a good sign that he was growing possessive of his boyfriend's new little brother. Then again, it was even worse a sign that his boyfriend grew possessive of his little brother too. Jason couldn't picture any scenario where that would end well. After all, Poseidon was fiercely protective of his troubled little son. Even without Nico being supposed to become a brotherly figure to Percy, Jason doubted that Poseidon would let _anyone_ close to his precious little boy.

“Who owns the farm by now?”, asked Poseidon, changing the topic for the sake of peace (he knew how protective his boyfriend was of their kids). “It looked abandoned. There were even the things of your grandparents still inside the house. It's a shame, really... It used to be quite beautiful.”

“Poseidon, the farmer”, whispered Hades amused. “I'd have loved to see that.”

“It belongs to Percy”, piped Hazel in. “He told us. It's in his mom's testament?”

She turned quizzical eyes on Hades, but the man just shrugged. “Never seen a testament.”

“W—What?”, asked Percy and sat up. “But... But... Wouldn't that mean her things go to Gabe?”

“Since he is Sally's widower, yes”, answered Hades slowly.

Percy slumped and looked upset. “No. That's not going to happen. Tri! Turn here.”

He gave Triton an address and they changed directions until they came to stop in front of the apartment building where Hades had first met Gabe Ugliano. Even before the car stopped, Percy was out of the car. Hades glared as Poseidon followed his son. Hades motioned for his children to stay in the car as he followed the two Jacksons upstairs. Percy picked the lock, but as he entered, he froze for a second. Poseidon laid a supporting hand onto his son's shoulder. Percy turned toward him with large eyes and took the hand, linking their fingers as he led his father into the small apartment. Hades followed them to a bookshelf and watched how Percy pushed it out of the way. In a vent in the wall was a wooden box hidden that Percy pulled out and handed to Hades. While Hades went through the legal documents – Percy's driver's license, passport, birth certificate, the same documents for Sally too and a testament – Poseidon looked around.

“You... grew up here?”, asked Poseidon shallowly. “That's...”

“Horrible?”, snorted Percy and shrugged, averting his eyes. “Can I... pack some of my mom's things before we leave? It's mine, after all. It says so on the testament. Mom showed it to me before. She made it early because everyone in her family had died so young, so she wanted to be prepared.”

Hades nodded slowly while reading the testament. Poseidon followed his son to a bedroom where Percy took a suitcase and started to pack some things – like  _Doctor Who_ DVD boxes that they had probably bought on a flea market, judging by the way the covers looked. Some books and the few jewelry and framed pictures on the bedside table that were of Sally and Percy, or even of Sally's parents. Poseidon kept looking around uncomfortably, wishing his boy would have grown up with them and not here. The snapping of the lock on the suitcase startled him.

“Let's go back home, dad”, whispered Percy, looking down onto the floor.

Poseidon actually stumbled a few steps and turned to stare wide-eyed at his son. Percy just offered him a nearly shy look, as though he wasn't sure if that had been okay. But the smile that lit up Poseidon's face then was all the answer Percy needed. He pulled his son into a tight hug.

“Let's go back home”, nodded Poseidon and kissed the top of Percy's head.


	8. Welcome to the Neighborhood

Chapter 8: Welcome to the Neighborhood

 

Percy woke up because he got a kick against the ribs. That had happened before, but normally with brunt force and followed by a slurred insult. This time around, it was followed by snoring and a tiny body snuggling up to him. Opening his eyes, he looked down at Tyson.

“Hey, little bugger. You can't just sneak into my bed”, chided Percy and sat up.

“Storm is evil”, mumbled Tyson as he too woke up, snuggling closer to Percy.

A sudden, loud thunder rumbled through the sky, causing both Tyson and Percy to jump and cling to each other. Great, how was Percy supposed to protect Tyson from the evil storm if he himself was afraid of it? Less so the storm itself, but more of what normally happened on stormy nights. Tyson started sobbing when lightning lit up the room. Percy made a decision. He cradled Tyson in his arms as he stood on wobbly legs. He still was sleepy and every time thunder roars, he felt a little weaker. He carried Tyson out of the room, his room-plate squealing as it shook when he opened the door too hastily. Walking only a few steps, he opened the next door, even though this time more cautious. Hades looked up from his laptop as the bedroom-door opened. Grunting a little, he elbowed Poseidon. Poseidon huffed, but when he looked up himself, he hastily put his book aside.

“What are you doing awake?”, asked Poseidon stunned.

“Just woke up and found Ty in my bed”, replied Percy, hoisting the young child up some.

“Why did you wake Percy, bambino?”, chided Hades, closing his laptop and putting it onto the nightstand. “Why didn't you come to us, Tyson? I'm sorry, Percy. He's scared of thunder.”

Another loud rumble of thunder and Percy flinched. Tyson whimpered a little, hiding more.

“I wanted, but when I walked past Percy's room, I heard him cry too”, answered Tyson softly. “So I went to Percy to make it good again and then I fell asleep again.”

Percy blushed embarrassed. “I must have had a nightmare. Sorry for worrying you, kiddo.”

He dumped Tyson on the bed, where Hades right away pulled the boy into a tight hug, kissing his forehead. Percy left again before they could ask or say anything. Heaving a relieved sigh, he headed back to his own room, just to find Nico standing in front of it.

“I heard you and Tyson outside, figured I'd check”, answered Nico without Percy asking.

Percy frowned confused as Nico followed him into his bedroom. “Is there something you want?”

“Tyson's right. You were crying. I tried to wake you up, but you sleep like the dead and after Tyson sneaked into your bed, you quieted down”, stated Nico, following Percy to his bed and sitting down next to him. “Wanna tell me what you've been dreaming about?”

Percy leaned against his headboard, staring at Nico. Jason had told him that opening up and talking about this stuff may help him getting over it. Percy wasn't sure about that just yet.

“I used to be afraid of thunderstorms when I was little”, started Percy slowly. “I cried a lot. And loudly. Mom often worked night-shifts, so Gabe would come to my room... Me crying bothered him. But I was afraid, so I wasn't silent. Normally I was pretty good at staying silent and unnoticed. So those, well, those were the hardest beatings. I stopped being afraid of the storms when I got older, but they... they kind of... trigger it for me, when it storms, I just remember the pain of the beatings that followed them. That's what... scares me today about them.”

Nico nodded slowly and scooted closer, laying one arm around Percy's shoulders. The boy leaned in as another thunder followed, trying to hide in Nico's side. Nico frowned, hugging Percy tightly.

“Y—You... say he came to your room. Did he... ever...”, started Nico, unsure if he wanted to finish.

“He's a sick bastard who likes to kick little kids when he feels bad about himself, but he's not a pedophile”, answered Percy firmly. “He never raped me, Nico.”

“Sorry. I just... had to ask, I guess”, mumbled Nico embarrassed and shrugged.

Percy nodded, not looking at Nico. “Would you... mind staying? Nothing cheesy like 'please hold me until the bad dreams go away'. Just... stay and talk to me until the storm's over?”

“Sure”, grinned Nico amused and nodded a little.

 

/break\

 

Jason frowned confused as he, Leo and Frank walk into Nico's room to find it empty. Leo and Frank glare at the back of Jason's head, like they expect him to magically produce Nico for them. The fuck did he know where his boyfriend was. Hades had said that Nico was most likely still asleep. Might as well wake Percy then, he guessed. They had come up here to wake Hazel, Nico and Percy. Though they had only knocked on Hazel's door – she didn't like being seen before being properly awake (unless it was waking up next to her boyfriends after sex, according to Frank). Jason froze when he opened the bedroom door, because on the bed were Nico and Percy, curled together. Frowning upset, he turned around and left to get downstairs. Frank, obviously confused, followed his friend while Leo walked up to the bed and poked Nico.

“Dude, wrong bed”, pointed Leo out, cocking one eyebrow. “Go after your jealous boyfriend.”

Nico frowned, tired and confused, before he stumbled out of the room. Leo took the now vacant spot on the bed and started poking Percy. This boy wasn't good for his friends' relationship, he could already see that. Had already seen it during movie night. Both Jason and Nico had rapidly fallen for the new kid. Nico had a protector-complex, it was how he had gotten together with Jason. And Jason, well, he could probably relate to Percy on some level and felt connected because of that.

“What are you doing in my bed?”, mumbled Percy confused. “Where's Nico?”

“Better question would be, why was he in your bed?”, asked Leo curiously and got comfortable.

“We talked long last night”, yawned Percy and stretched. “Why? What's the big deal about it?”

And Percy looked honestly lost about this. Leo sighed and shook his head. This boy had not a single malicious bone in his body, he wasn't playing with Jason and Nico. He just sought comfort.

“Come on, breakfast is waiting”, prompted Leo with a small, sad smile.

 

/break\

 

“Amore, aspetta!”, called Nico out as Jason just kept walking away from him. “Mi dispiance.”

“Ah, shut up, di Angelo”, growled Jason with an upset frown as he turned around. “Don't try and sooth me with your hot Italian voice, asshole. Why were you sleeping in his bed?! I thought we agreed, the whole little stepbrother thing is dangerous and that he's in a fragile state of mind and-”

“Veni qui, mio amato cuore”, murmured Nico softly, opening his arms.

“Gah”, groaned Jason and gave in, because damn it, Nico sounded just too sexy when he was speaking his mother-tongue. “Asshole. Explain yourself. Right now.”

“He had a nightmare. We spend the night talking about... his childhood. The abuse, but also about his mother”, replied Nico. “We just talked. So long until we must have fallen asleep. Do you really think I'd cheat on you? Or that I'd use Percy's situation to get into his pants?”

Jason frowned for a moment before kissing Nico. “Sorry I overreacted. It's just... You two look far too cute all cuddled up like that. It made me... jealous.”

“No need to be jealous. You and me look cute too”, countered Nico with a grin. “Let's grab something to eat, Jay. You can make up for that tantrum later.”

He slapped Jason's ass playfully which earned him an annoyed eye-roll from the blonde.

 

/break\

 

Breakfast was loud, colorful and fun. Percy had long since gotten used to this and honestly, it was his favorite thing about the di Angelo family. For him, breakfast had always meant hastily grabbing a toast on his way out of the door. His mom was always at work already when he got up, so having a real, proper family meal was really his favorite thing now.

“Dad said you're all invited to barbeque tonight”, declared Frank as they cleaned the table.

“Ares' barbeques are widely famous around here. They're practically a summer ritual and now that we're slowly running out of sunny days, we have to use what little good days we have left”, explained Hades with laughter in his eyes, looking at Percy. “Do you want to go?”

Percy frowned slightly and shrunk some. Only times he had left the house so far were when he had gone shopping and then for his mother's funeral. Now he was supposed to meet the neighborhood?

“Come on, it will be total fun”, declared Leo with a broad grin and nudged him. “Besides, I need a good reason to hide from Frank's dad and a new guy is perfect for that.”

“Why do you need to hide?”, asked Percy confused. “Is Frank's dad a bad guy?”

“Captain Ares Mars Zhang la Rue is from the NYPD and he's one hell of a scary dude”, replied Leo with a shudder. “He always makes me call him Captain Zhang and 'sir', even though Frank's mom is totally nice and allows me to call her Emily, even though she's a detective too.”

“Dad's a little old-fashioned, he's not a big fan of me being 'gay for the pretty boy'”, explained Frank and rolled his eyes. “He enjoys intimidating Leo. I enjoy that too, because whenever dad intimidates Leo, Leo's even more adorable than he normally is. Oh, you should meet my sister!”

“And his cousins. They live with Frank's family because both their parents are in the army”, added Nico. “Reyna, the younger cousin, is a good friend of ours. Hylla, her sister, is as scary as Ares.”

“Okay. Let's go to the barbeque”, declared Percy with a small nod. “I always wanted to see something like this. The whole street getting together for a nice, cute barbeque.”

 

/break\

 

Percy regretted having said yes after about half an hour. Benches and tables were set all over the garden, which was only a little smaller than that of the di Angelos. Ares was a broad, intimidating guy, so Percy had to agree with Leo. Bianca had run off with a girl named Thalia – Jason's sister – and two others, Zoe and Phoebe if Percy had gotten that right. Tyson was comfortably seated on Poseidon's lap, who was in the middle of an animated conversation with Missus and Missus Gardner, Hestia and Demeter by name. Hades stood next to the grill, talking to the host. Percy had wanted to stick with Nico and Jason, but they had left together with two guys who they had introduced as Ethan and Alabaster as well as that cousin of Frank's; Reyna. He couldn't stick with Hazel, because Ares had managed to make Leo bolt in fear so she and Frank were currently tracking him down again to calm him. Surrounded by all those strangers, he sought out someone familiar and found himself hugely relieved when he spotted Thanatos and Triton.

“Hey, little brother”, grinned Triton and pulled Percy up against his side, ruffling his hair. “Let me introduce you. These are Circe Torrington, Persephone Gardner and my boyfriend, Herakles Grace. Guys, this is our new baby-brother Percy. Be nice to him. Especially you, Circe.”

Circe was kind of creepy, but Persephone was really pretty. And honestly, Herakles looked like a jerk. He was by far not as handsome as Jason. Percy frowned confused when he saw the jealous look Thanatos threw at Herakles when the blonde pulled Triton into a kiss. Which in return only seemed to spike Herakles' lust, because it basically became a make-out-session. Growing more uncomfortable by the minute (and not wanting to witness how Thanatos beat Herakles up), Percy left. He wasn't sure if the jealousy was real, proper jealousy or if Thanatos was playing protective, older brother. Somehow, it had looked more like the real deal, which was kind of weird.

“Hi. You look kind of lost. Do you need help?”

Percy jumped slightly and turned around. The Zhang la Rues had a couple of trees on their property and Percy had thought he could hide behind them for a bit to calm down again. All those strangers were freaking him out and he tried to figure out what exactly was going on between Triton, Thanatos and Herakles. To do so, he had wanted to maybe climb a tree and observe from above. It seemed someone else had already thought of that. Looking up, he saw a couple sitting on a tree-branch. The girl was beautiful, with auburn hair, wearing a green summer-dress. The boy however already had a goatee and messy, brown curls. He grinned down at Percy.

“Grover Underwood. This is my girlfriend, Juniper Gardner”, introduced the brunette.

“Gardner? Like Persephone? And... uhm, the two ladies talking to my dad?”, asked Percy curiously, tilting his head. “I'm Percy. I'm Poseidon's son. What are you doing on the tree?”

“Persephone is my older sister and Hestia and Demeter are my mothers”, nodded Juniper amused. “We're in the tree because we get some privacy up here. You look like you could use some privacy too. Would you like to join us? It's really nice up here.”

“Can I... ask you how it works in your family?”, asked Percy softly as he climbed up. “I'm sorry. I probably sound rude. But when I moved in with Poseidon, it was kind of weird at first. I've never met such an unorthodox patchwork-family. I'm surprised... uhm...that there are two of those here.”

“Myosotis Lane isn't all that orthodox and old-fashioned”, offered Juniper with a small smile. “I have two more sisters named Katie and Miranda. Our moms had us by in vitro.”

“Yeah, I mean, Zeus and Hera Grace took two kids from one of Zeus' affairs in, that's not all that orthodox either”, pointed Grover out and started to point at various guests of the barbeque while talking. “Okay, there are the Chases, Frederick and Athena, who are really just an average, boring family. Mom's a professor, dad's a professor, two children, girl named Annabeth and boy named Malcolm, both geniuses just like their parents.” Percy observed a pretty blonde girl with long curls and an equally blonde guy, both having their noses buried in books.

“The Torringtons too, Howard's even a doctor professor or something and they got three kids. There, Circe, that over there is Alabaster Claymore and that's the youngest, Lou Ellen.” Wow, that was a weird bunch. Circe had already been creepy, but the fierce brunette boy with the freckles looked even creeper. The purple-haired punk-girl looked like the nicest out of the bunch.

“Ares and Emily, our dear hosts, live with their son Frank and daughter Clarisse, but also with Ares' nieces Hylla and Reyna. It's pretty kind of them and the family is totally a family of heroes. Everyone on their family-tree was in the army, or marines, or a police officer of sorts.” Frank's big sister Clarisse was a little scary, but Percy felt like he may be able to like her, because she was a real badass. Hylla and Reyna were basically worshiping Circe, so Percy wasn't sure about them.

“And have you met the Beckendorfs yet? Hephaestus and Esperanza. They have a whole bunch of kids – Charles, Jake, Nyssa, Leo and Shane. Though Jake's kind of the same like Thalia and Jason, he has been taken in by them even though he was the result of a stupid one-night-stand from Hephaestus. They own a car shop. Whole family is obsessed with cars.” Leo's siblings looked _nothing_ like him. Charles was a black-skinned guy like their father, while Shane was a redheaded Irish-looking boy. Nyssa looked like a Latina too, but Jake was a broad white guy. Seemed like Leo had a colorful family too, literally even in this case. And they seemed to love the little Latino a lot, because they were all fussing over an anxious Leo behind the house at the moment. Percy grinned.

“Missus Nightshade and Doctor Solace are actually twins, but they bicker all the time. Both are single parents. Artemis has a bunch of daughters, which is probably good because she _really_ hates men. They're over there – Zoe, Phoebe and Calypso. The contrary is Apollo, because he _really_ loves women. Single father of three kids, Will, Kayla and over there Austin. But he also raises his twice-removed nieces Rachel Elizabeth Dare and Ella Rebecca Dare, because even though he's a total playboy, he's a good guy.” Oh, Percy adored Ella, because she was Tyson's best friend and she was just too cute. Ella's big sister was a redhead too and she looked pretty tough. The Solaces were all three beautiful blondes, it was scary. While the Nightshade-sisters were all brunette and fierce.

“Then there are the McLeans. That's where I live. Tristan and Aphrodite are actors, they spend a lot of their time away, that's why they have a live-in nanny. My mother Mellie. My dad is Tristan's personal trainer. They have four children. Silena, she's from a previous marriage of Aphrodite's, Piper and the twins Lacy and Mitchell. Pretty normal family, _but_ Aphrodite used to be married to Hephaestus when they were young, but that marriage broke when Aphrodite had an affair with Ares. No idea how Tristan can be fine with that kind of past while living basically next door to the men.” Percy was nodding obediently while watching the family. Lacy, Silena and Mitchell looked very much like their mother, pale and with light hair, while Piper was native American like their father. But all of them were drop-dead gorgeous. Which seemed to be a theme in this street.

“And then we have the Castellans. Hermes and his son Luke. As well as all the foster kids Hermes took in – there's Octavian Simmons, Travis and Connor Stoll, Drew Tanaka, Chris Rodriguez, Kinzie Cohen and Ethan Nakamura”, listed Grover to end the introductions.

Ethan was the guy having his hands down Alabaster's pants while laughing over something Jason said. Those two seemed to be good friends with Jason and Nico. Percy tilted his head intrigued.

“You know your way around here, huh?”, grunted Percy a little surprised.

“Just wanted to show you that the Jackson di Angelos aren't aren't the only unorthodox family around”, shrugged Grover with a grin. “No one around is going to judge you for having two dads, or being form... uhm, wait... six different mothers. We're all our own brand of family and that's fine. Wanna tell how you ended up with the Jackson di Angelos? Each of them has their own story, after all. I'm kind of a sucker of those, if you haven't noticed yet.”

Percy laughed a little, before turning sad. “Mom died. Dad was the obvious choice to stay with.”

Grover grew awkward at that, feeling like he had just stepped into uncharted territory. So he tried to lighten the mood by changing the topping and Percy soon found himself laughing at the stories Grover had to tell about all of them, making him feel like part of the community all too soon.

 

/break\

 

“So, how's it going?”, asked Hades lowly as he bit into his steak in a roll.

“He's pleading not guilty. Tries to spin it so you forced him to confess something he didn't do. Wants custody again, even shed big, fat tears because you took the boy away”, replied Ares darkly.

“Y—You're not going to take Percy away from us again, right?”, asked Hades, his food falling to the ground as his stomach dropped. “He can't get Percy back. That would break the boy.”

“Who do you think you're talking to?”, asked Emily lightly as she joined the conversation, the ex-navy throwing him a small smile. “You hurt him in defense when he attacked you. Stick to that. And we have the medical records, Apollo will testify about the obvious past abuse and the reaction Percy showed at the prospect of having to go back to his stepfather. The case would be stronger with Percy's testimony and you know that as well as we do, but I trust our DA.”

Hades nodded and smiled slightly. As a defense attorney, he was most of the times on the opposite side from the two cops, so he was all the more grateful for how helpful they had been with this.

“Hades Pluto di Angelo! Stop talking business and come here to entertain me!”

Hades cringed a little and excused himself from the couple to join his boyfriend. Poseidon just knew him too well, he even knew when Hades was 'talking business', just by looking at his face.

 

/break\

 

Nico, Jason, Alabaster and Ethan were laying at the pool, only in their boxer-shorts. Reyna had ditched them in favor of hanging out with Circe. She and her big sister Hylla liked feeling cool by hanging out with the older girl. The day was really hot, even though it was already the beginning of October, so Nico got why Ares had wanted to have a barbeque today. Such an opportunity had to be used. Turning around, Nico supported his weight with his arms on either side of Jason's chest while his mouth found its way to Jason's sixpack, his teeth nibbling the delicious muscles, tongue enjoying the salty taste of the sun-kissed skin. Nico grinned against the skin as the muscles twitched at the treatment. Honestly, Nico had found Jason's little jealousy-fit adorable.

“Dudes, stop being gross. You're a total turn-off”, grunted Alabaster annoyed.

“I think they make a pretty hot couple.”

Nico and Jason nearly bumped heads when they sat up at the same moment. They looked up wide-eyed at a nonchalantly grinning Percy, who was flanked by Grover and Juniper. While the couple went to jump into the pool, the poor boy with the cast on his arm sat down next to Jason.

“Huh, you weren't lying Jason, he is sexy”, observed Ethan intrigued.

“Eyes down here, Nakamura, or you'll lose one”, warned Alabaster with a fierce glare.

Percy laughed amused and laid down on his back, staring up into the clouds. They were soon joined by Tyson, who happily snuggled up to Percy, having looked _eeeverywhere_ for his big brother. With Tyson came Ella, who babbled on about clouds and how they were made. Soon after Ella came Ella's big sister Rachel and also Annabeth. The two girls were chatting until they sat down next to the two children, spotting the new boy that was being hugged by Tyson.

“Who's your pillow, Ty?”, inquired Rachel curiously.

“Is mio fratellone Percy”, said Tyson proudly, before frowning. “I'm hungry, Percy.”

“And we can't have that”, smiled Percy and sat up some. “Come, let's get you something to eat.”

“Oh, he has a _cute_ ass”, observed Rachel while Percy and Tyson left.

“That he does”, was the last thing Percy heard, unsure who had said that, but still embarrassed.

“Hey, uhm, my baby brother's hungry”, stated Percy unsure as he walked up to Ares.

“What you want, kiddo?”, grunted Ares, staring down at Tyson amused.

“Everything!”, declared Tyson loudly and happily. “Let's go to daddy and papà!”

He tugged on Percy's hand until Percy found himself sitting on a chair next to Poseidon. His dad looked really happy, talking to his friends. This whole community looked so nice. Percy blushed a little as all attention was suddenly turned to him. Hestia and Demeter Gardner, Howard and Hecate Torrington, Emily Zhang la Rue and the Chases Frederick and Athena.

“This the newest addition to the di Angelo family?”, asked Hecate amused.

“Come ti chiami?”, asked Athena Chase interested, looking him up. [trans: _What's your name?_ ]

“Hecate, Athena!”, grunted Poseidon chidingly. “First of all, he's not a di Angelo, he's a Jackson and not even the di Angelos are born speaking Italian! Really now, women.”

“Mi chiamo Percy”, replied Percy, sounding soft and unsure while ignoring his dad. [trans: _My name is Percy_ ]

“Quanti anni hai?”, continued the genius woman curiously, tilting her head. [trans: _How old are you?_ ]

“Uhm... Sedici”, answered Percy, sounding even more unsure now. [trans: _Sixteen_ ]

“Parla italiano?”, inquired Hades now, leaning in to look at his nearly-stepson intrigued. [trans: _You speak Italian?_ ]

“Well, I'm kinda trying to learn. Not much to do inside the house all day and I found a few books in the library, so I started learning. I just got some major phrases covered yet. Not much”, shrugged Percy a little embarrassed and blushed. “Nico said it's part of... being part of the family.”

“So you enjoy living with the di Angelos then?”, asked Demeter with a smile.

“I... Yes”, nodded Percy slowly, smiling himself. “They've been very nice to me.”

“I find it hard to imagine not to be nice to you. You're so sweet with Tyson”, cooed Emily amused.

Percy returned the smile, but his was more painful. Why were the people here so sure that everyone was supposed to love him? All of his life, his mother had been the only one to love him.

“That must be Poseidon's genes, look at Ty. I tell you, he'll be our next donor”, concluded Hestia.

Demeter next to her laughed and soon, the others joined in to. Percy grinned when he saw that Poseidon blushed just the same way as Percy did. He started to really feel like he belonged here.


	9. Making Friends

Chapter 9: Making Friends

 

“Hey there, sleepy head. You know you're not a prisoner here, right?”, questioned Hazel amused as she stood in the doorway to Percy's room. “Why don't you gather yourself and come with me, walk the dogs in the park? You spend entirely too much time holed up in here with Ty.”

Percy grunted and looked up at his new kinda-sister. She was probably right. The only time he had left the mansion so far had been for the barbeque two days ago. Nodding slowly, Percy got up and followed her to two eagerly waiting dogs. Zerberus and Missus O'Leary stared up at them. Grinning a little, Percy took Mrs. O'Leary by the leash while Hazel took Zerberus with her.

“How are you feeling today, Percy?”, asked Hazel softly as he flanked the green-eyed boy.

“Good. Doctor Solace said I'll get the cast off tomorrow”, replied Percy with a grin.

“That's good. Come on now, let's get going”, ordered Hazel with a light smile.

 

/break\

 

“So... how's life with the new kid?”, asked Alabaster while turning on Nico's office chair.

Nico rolled his eyes as he watched the brunette. Ethan was leaning against his bed, sitting on the floor, while Nico had Jason on his lap. Rachel was roaming the bookshelf for something new.

“He's cute”, commented Rachel, earning her stares from the other four boys. “What? I'm not blind. He totally has a cute ass that begs to be squeezed. Or pinched.”

“Or spanked”, offered Ethan, which caused Alabaster to kick him in the side. “Ouch. It was just a suggestion for later... uhm... usage. Not for me, Ally. For Nico and Jason, of course.”

“What's that supposed to mean?”, grunted Jason with a glare. “He's Nico's brother.”

“Right”, snorted Alabaster and made quotation-marks with his fingers. “'Brother' who he had known for like three weeks and who's not related to him by blood or even by marriage since... what the fuck, why hasn't Hades put a ring on it yet anyway? Because he should, like seriously.”

“Yeah, I know”, huffed Nico and laid down with his head hanging over the bed, looking at his friends upside-down. “The thing is, well, Poseidon doesn't really believe in marriage. Papà already proposed like twenty or so times. I think dad has issues about papà's money, like... he doesn't feel as though he is bringing enough into the marriage, which is real rubbish. But I really don't get adults in general, so there's that. Dad will cave, one day. He always does with papà.”

“I think your dad is just scared. I mean, marriage changes people”, shrugged Jason thoughtful.

“Speak for yourself”, stated Alabaster and cocked one eyebrow. “Mom and dad are totally disgustingly happy when they do all their professor-stuff and crap.”

 

/break\

 

Percy was feeling awkward and left out. At first it had been nice, talking to Hazel and listening to how she had met Frank and Leo and gotten into this threesome-relationship-thingy. But then they had met Frank and his cousin Reyna, who were walking their own family dogs Argentum and Aurum. Frank had been holding hands with Leo and Reyna had been holding hands with a pretty blonde girl. Annabeth, if Percy remembered that correctly. Hazel had started chatting with Reyna about girl stuff. So Percy had strayed a little, together with Mrs. O'Leary.

“Hey there, loner. Don't get lost”, chided Leo as he nudged Percy curiously.

“So, you're the new Jackson. Wanna share your story with the group?”, inquired the blonde with a small smile, thrusting her hand out. “Annabeth Chase. I'm Reyna's girlfriend.”

Percy frowned confused, staring at the hand. “Uhm, yeah. I'd shake that, but if I let go of Mrs. O'Leary there, she'll be half-way to Vegas before we finished shaking hands and my other hand...”

“Is broken, yes”, nodded Annabeth thoughtful, noticing the cast. “What happened?”

Percy looked away and glared a little into the sky. “Life, I guess. Mine anyway.”

“Well, whatever it was, it led you here”, mused Annabeth with a small smile. “And that doesn't seem too bad, now does it? I saw you at the barbeque with Tyson, he completely adores you.”

Percy turned to look at her surprised. He had never thought about it like that. If the accident wouldn't have happened, he'd never have met his father, Hades, Tyson, Thanatos, Triton, Nico, Bianca, Hazel. He wouldn't be here, he wouldn't be safe and semi-happy. He'd still be in that shitty apartment, afraid of the next beating. His mother had died and he'd _never_ be happy about that, but the way his life as a total had turned since the accident, it was... actually good.

“Has anyone ever told you you're a really wise girl?”, stated Percy stunned, blinking.

“Everyone, Percy. All the time”, answered Leo instead, snickering to himself.

Annabeth huffed and turned red, causing Leo and Percy to laugh. At least until Hazel and Reyna approached them. Reyna cocked one eyebrow and laid her arm around Annabeth's waist.

“What did the evil boys say to make you blush so much?”, asked Reyna curiously.

“Nothing that hadn't been said dozens of times before”, snickered Leo.

“Evil firebug”, chuckled Hazel, sneaking one hand into the back-pocket of Leo's pants.

“Where... is Frank?”, asked Leo as he turned red too.

“Over there. Battling with the three dogs. And losing”, stated Reyna, not sorry at all for her cousin. “He rattled me out to his parents when Annabeth was over yesterday. He deserves the suffering.”

The other teens turned toward Frank, who was laying on the ground, beneath a heap of three dogs. All of them started laughing at the desperate look on Frank's face. Percy could get used to that.

 

/break\

 

When they returned from the park, everyone was already busy with making lunch. Poseidon was standing at the hearth, together with Nico and Triton. With nine people in their family, they needed a lot of food and Hades had a short day today, working from home after noon, which meant he was there for the meal too. Jason was sitting comfortably on the kitchen-counter, watching Nico. Thanatos and Bianca were setting the table, while Tyson kept stealing food from the pots and pans.

“You're spoiling your appetite, Ty”, commented Percy and knelt down beside Ty, kissing his cheek.

“But it's to _good_ ”, whined Tyson and turned to stare at Percy with large eyes.

“I know”, sighed Percy and stole a piece of chicken out of Nico's pan.

“Tyson, go and wash your hands. Percy, Hazel, you too”, ordered Hades amused.

“Okay, papà”, chorused the two boys and dashed off to the bathroom.

Hades wasn't the only one staring after them with large, surprised eyes. “Did he just...?”

“Well, he started calling me dad when we were on his mother's funeral”, countered Poseidon with a thoughtful frown. “I wouldn't have thought he'd warm up to you too that fast, but then again...”

“We should just be glad he's getting used to us, as a family”, stated Thanatos firmly.

“Point taken”, agreed his father, ruffling his hair, which annoyed the young man immensely.

They slowly got ready for lunch and got settled around the dining table. The others started to stumble over each other, talking about their days and how school was. Percy just listened.

“So”, started Hades once everyone had gotten the most important things off his chest. “About your doctor's appointment today, Percy... It's in two hours, after all.”

“I don't want to be a bother”, frowned Percy concerned. “I can go alone.”

“That's not what I meant”, sighed Hades and shook his head. “I wanted to know who you want to drive you there, Percy. You don't have to go alone, we're a family, bambino.”

Percy blushed a little as this was the first time Hades had called him that, before turning his attention to his biological brother. “Do you have time, Triton? If it's not a bother, of course.”

“Of course”, nodded Triton a little surprise before mustering a smile. “Of course, Percy.”

 

/break\

 

Triton and Percy had been gone for about an hour and Nico was in the middle of ravishing Jason, the blonde sprawled out all over his bed. Which was all nice until a knocking on the door interrupted them. Groaning annoyed, Nico wrapped the sheets around his waist, also covering Jason up, before turning to glare at the door as though it personally had offended him.

“Come in”, growled Nico reluctantly.

“Watch your tone, young man”, chuckled Hades, raising one eyebrow. “I know how it feels to be interrupted in the middle of doing someone, or what do you think how often you and your siblings bother me and Poseidon? Now, I'd like to talk to you for a minute, if that's convenient.”

“Sure, papà”, mumbled Nico embarrassed, ruffling his curls. “What's up?”

“Since Percy is getting rid of his cast today, he'll start school next Monday. That's still four days away and I'd like for you to catch him up on what he missed so far, starting today.”

“Uh, teacher Nico, now that's a...”, started Jason in a teasing tone before realizing Hades was staring at him weirdly. “A nothing, I mean. A good idea for his future, perhaps?”

“Right”, snorted Hades ridiculed. “You and your dirty mind, Jason Grace. Anyway, I just thought you could get the papers from Malcolm and read into what they were doing.”

“Sure, I'll drop by at the Chases right when we finished what we started”, nodded Nico.

“ _Seriously_?!”, hissed Jason embarrassed, hitting Nico's upper arm.

“Just like his old man”, laughed Hades loudly before turning around again to leave.

“...Or maybe not”, muttered Nico and turned a little green. “That gave me a scary mental pictures of my fathers. Yeah, no. Sorry, Jay, I think we're done here for today. Wanna come with me?”

Jason sighed softly and rolled out of the bed, knowing that yes, being interrupted by a parent kind of killed the mood. So why not visiting the Chases? He grabbed their clothes and nodded. Once they actually managed to get dressed – which was a bit hard with Nico sneaking kisses in – they headed out of the house and down the street to the Chases' place, knocking the door.

“Ah, Nico, Jason. Annabeth isn't home”, greeted Frederick with a smile.

“We actually wanted to talk to Malcolm. My new brother is going to start school soon and he'll be in Malcolm's class, so our fathers want for me to bring him up on speed”, replied Nico.

“Malcolm is in his room”, answered Frederick and stepped aside. “Call if you need something.”

Nico and Jason nodded and walked past him. They knew their way around in most of the houses in this street since their friends and their siblings' friends were spread all through them. Jason was grinning broadly when they entered Malcolm's room, because the blonde was laying sprawled under his girlfriend Katie, who was kissing him quite possessively.

“Not so sorry to interrupt, but we'd need that one beneath you for a moment”, stated Nico amused.

Katie glared at them and stood, straightening her dress. “Well, if you rather spend time with the boys, I'll be in my backyard with my sisters, Malcolm.”

The blonde pushed his glasses up and stared after her desperately before turning to Nico and Jason with the angriest glare he could muster. “I really, really, really hate you sometimes.”

 

/break\

 

“So... why did you want me to drive you, Percy?”, asked Triton a little uncomfortably.

“I figured since I spend a lot of time with Tyson and Nico and I got to bond with Bianca and Hazel already, but I feel like I don't really know you and Thanatos and I kinda, I don't know...”, muttered Percy, feeling like he was just stringing together a couple of words here. “Or don't you want to...?”

Triton threw a side-ways glance at the kitten-eyes and groaned. “No, that's not it. I was just surprised. Well, tell me what you want to talk about. What do you want to know?”

“You're dating Jason's big brother, right?”, asked Percy curiously, turning more toward his big brother. “I just... the only one Jason talks about is his big sister, so it doesn't sound like he's getting along with his brother a lot. Is that kind of a problem, what with Jason practically living with us?”

Triton grinned amused when Percy was talking about 'living with _us_ '. “No, it's not a problem. I don't really care what Jason thinks about his brother, that's their family-business.”

“And do you care what _Thanatos_ thinks?”, asked Percy boldly.

“No idea what you're talking about”, grunted Triton stubbornly.

“Well, he just... looked really protective and annoyed whenever Herakles was kissing you during the barbeque”, replied Percy with a shrug. “He really didn't look happy about your relationship.”

“That is entirely his problem. He and Herakles always had this kind of rivalry”, shrugged Triton.

“Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude...”, mumbled Percy, turning to the window.

“No, it's alright. You've just been thrown into all of this and gotta learn about the social connections between everyone”, sighed Triton and shook his head. “It's just a... sensitive topic. Our fathers don't like Herakles either, which was kind of the reason why I got together with him, to rebel...”

“You must love him a lot to put up with all the disapproval”, stated Percy thoughtful.

“I like him a lot and I enjoy being together with him, but I... never really fell in love with him. I always thought I would at one point, but... That doesn't change that I like being with him.”

Percy didn't have to know that Herakles was just a rebound because Triton couldn't have Thanatos and that every time Thanatos glared at Herakles felt like a little victory to Triton, because it felt just the tiniest bit as though he meant something more to Thanatos.

 

/break\

 

Jason was biting his lower lip as he sat with his back against Percy's bed, watching Nico. The Italian was wearing his reading glasses (which he _rarely_ did) and was writing onto a black board which they had stolen from Tyson's room. Notes and books were spread throughout the room.

“You have to play with me! You can really-really play now! Please, Percy!”

The loud voice of Tyson was shortly followed by the opening of the door. A rather carefree looking Percy was carrying Tyson in his arms, grinning at the little brunette. Though when he noticed the mess in his room, he frowned and put Tyson down, who started pouting at that.

“Percy. Sit. You'll start school on Monday and I have the great pleasure to summarize all you missed in the past three weeks”, ordered Nico, pushing his glasses up.

“Ew, school”, mumbled Tyson and wiggled his nose before running out of the room again.

“Traitor”, muttered Percy beneath his breath and sat down on his bed dutifully. “Why bother? I'm a bad student under normal circumstances, but with changing schools _again_ and having missed so much. I can just, I don't know, sit through it and repeat it next year. Whatever.”

“You're not serious”, stated Nico, thrusting a book at Percy. “Here. History.”

“I _am_ serious”, corrected Percy with a deadpan. “You haven't seen the teachers that failed with me. I'm a lost cause, Nico. I'm just... dumb. So don't waste your afternoon with all of this.”

“Hey”, grunted Nico firmly, grabbing Percy's face and forcing him to look at him. “That over there used to be a relatively stereotypical blonde too before he encountered the trio that is Annabeth, Rachel and me. I don't believe that you're dumb. You just haven't found the right method to learn. So give me a chance to teach you. We'll find the right method for you, Perce. Don't give up on yourself, because that would make you the _only one_ in this house who'd not believe in you.”

Percy blushed a little under the intense stare of Nico and found himself nodding slightly. Even if he wouldn't learn a thing, the teacher-version of Nico was kind of hot in his bossiness.

 

/break\

 

After about an hour, Nico had come to some different conclusions. First of all, they needed to work on Percy's self-esteem because entirely too little people had believed in Percy and called him dumb already. Secondly, okay he really wasn't the brightest, he _was_ a little slow. Thirdly, his defense mechanism to being slow was being a cheeky brat. Which led to fourthly, Nico really had an undeniable urge to bend Percy over and spank him with a ruler when Percy was being cheeky.

“Okay, this isn't working”, groaned Jason and interrupted the third take on the Third Reich.

“What I said right from the start”, huffed Percy, rolling onto his back.

“You, shut it”, ordered Jason and rolled his eyes. “I swear, you're making this hard on purpose.”

This whole thing wasn't good for Jason's dick, because it _hurt_. Not that teacher Nico hadn't always been hot – heck, Jason remembered purposely failing Latin a couple of times even though it was his best subject just so he could get tutoring. But the rebellious student Percy wasn't helping him any, because it brought out Nico's more controlling and dominant side. All with the stern voice and the firm glare. Honestly, Jason had been pretty sure about three times already that Nico would just spank some sense into Percy (he remembered vividly how Nico had done that to him a couple of times before). All in all, he had enough jerk-off material to last a life-time.

 

/break\

 

“It's routine and you know it, Hades. I'm not doing it to spite you.”

“We know that, Hestia. And still he looks like a brooding, pouting child”, sighed Poseidon.

Hades just huffed and glared. Hestia, Ares and Emily were over. Not for fun, but for business. The two detectives were accompanying the social worker on an official visit. Hades knew that, he knew it was protocol. He still didn't like that anyone needed to check if his home was appropriate for Percy. But Gabe was claiming that he had been forced to sign off his legal rights and he was actually fighting for custody – while being charged with child abuse. Hades couldn't believe the nerve of this man and he was grateful that bail had failed for this bastard.

“Let's go and see Percy”, suggested Hestia softly, looking over at him with tender eyes.

Hades heaved a sigh and led the way to Percy's room, praying that whatever they'd find would not be awkward. Of course it was. Nico was standing in front of a black-board like some kind of teacher, even wearing one of his rare ties. And Percy and Jason were jumping on the bed. Jason without a shirt, but with notes written all over his upper body.

“What... is this?”, grunted Ares and gave the teens a weird look.

“Oh. We figured a learning method out for Percy”, answered Nico, staying completely professional. “Turns out he's the visual kind and his brain works better when he's in motion. We've been testing different ways for like... oh, wow, three hours now. All caught up with his history classes by the way. Is there anything we can do for you, Detectives Zhang la Rue?”

Percy was panting hard, his face flushed as he collapsed forward onto his bed. This had been exhausting, but it had also been fun and he even still remembered stuff that Nico and Jason had been telling him about. Also, he appreciated the exercise. He looked up at the adults curiously.

“They're... here for Percy”, started Hades softly. “It... seems as though your former stepfather realized he's losing a lot of money if he doesn't have custody. He's pleading not guilty and fighting for custody, but since he didn't get bail and you have no other family, the court send Missus Gardener over to check, in her function as a social worker, if this place is... appropriate for you.”

Percy took a second to stare at them before he felt like his world was breaking apart beneath his feet and he just rushed out of the room. Poseidon turned, wanting to follow him, but Nico stopped him.

“”Let him go, dad. Cool off some”, whispered Nico, looking concerned.

 

/break\

 

Annabeth was sitting in the Zhang la Rues' garden, together with Reyna, Clarisse, Nyssa, Hazel, Piper and Rachel. At least until they heard the rustling of leaves from the tree-house. Frowning confused, the girls got up to check it out. Frank and Leo wouldn't go up without Hazel.

“Who's there?”, grunted Clarisse with a glare, climbing up.

She was followed by her cousin Reyna and then the other three girls. They were surprised to find a crying boy sitting in a corner, curled together. The new Jackson. Hazel stared wide-eyed at her new big brother and rushed over to him, tapping him on the shoulder to get his attention.

“Percy? Percy, are you alright?”, asked Hazel softly. “What are you doing here?”

“I'm sorry. I'm... trespassing”, muttered Percy with a horrified look on his face. “I just... I'm out of my element. In the big city, I got my places to run to to think and here, I... Grover showed me this place during the barbeque and it's small and nice and not fancy and I'm sorry, I should go.”

“You're free to come, Percy”, smiled Reyna and sat down next to him. “You're a sweet kid.”

“Wanna tell us what's wrong?”, asked Annabeth softly, sitting down opposite Percy.

Percy liked Annabeth already and Reyna too, after he had met them in the dog-park this morning. The others had been nice to him during the barbeque too, but he didn't want to blurt out his family-story to them. He didn't want to, yet deep down, he actually kinda did. He needed to talk to someone, because he felt like he was going to burst if he didn't get it off his chest.

“My stepfather wants custody back”, stated Percy, his arms around his legs.

“Why did he lose it? I mean, if he wants to get it back, he lost it somehow, right?”, asked Piper.

“P... Hades made him sign it over to them after I came here, crashing their family”, muttered Percy, staring onto the floor. “Because my stepfather likes to beat the crap outta me. Hades promised to make it better. Now my stepfather is pleading not guilty and wants to get me back and I was foolish enough to get attached to this stupid place and to their family. I should have known better. I never get nice things, why should I now that my mom is dead...?”

“You know what you need?”, asked Rachel softly. “You need a lot of ice-cream and a girls-only-sleepover. It's what we do when one of us is caught up in drama. Totally helps clear the mind. Hazel, Annabeth, you going to come and help me gather everything?”

“Uhm... sure...”, nodded Annabeth slowly.

 

/break\

 

Apparently, Leo was a girl too, because by the time Percy was cozily curled together in a sleeping bag, Hazel was laying next to him, cuddling a happy Latino. She had gathered stuff for them all together with the other two girls and informed all the parents where they'd be and after watching some horrible chick flicks on Reyna's laptop, gossiping about boys and eating definitely too much ice-cream, all the girls were already deep asleep. Percy couldn't sleep, but he was really feeling better somehow. They hadn't asked stupid question about the abuse, or his stepfather, or his mother's death, they had just accepted it and tried to take his mind off of things.

“Hades won't let him take you away again”, whispered Leo softly as he noticed that Percy was still awake. “The Jackson di Angelos stick together. He fought so hard for you until now, he's not going to give up on you. None of them are. They're all over in that big mansion, worrying about you.”

Percy frowned as he had to think of Nico's words. He'd be the only one not believing in himself. And he knew that was true, but that was what would only make it hurt more in the end...


	10. On Horseback and in Water

Chapter 10: On Horseback and in Water

 

Breakfast was unusually silent. Triton was simply consuming his coffee, Thanatos had his nose buried in the newspapers, Nico, Jason and Bianca were more or less just poking their food.

“Where's my Percy?”, asked Tyson upset and looked around. “Why's everyone so sad...?”

Hades heaved a sigh and pushed his mug away. How was he to explain this to the little one? Not knowing what to say, the family remained silent for a few more moments until the door opened and Hazel and Percy entered. Percy more so walking behind Hazel, his head bowed down.

“Perseus! You're back!”, exclaimed Poseidon and stood, relief flooding him.

Hades laid one hand on top of Poseidon's to keep him from downright jumping Percy. Percy had ran away yesterday, not overwhelming him now would be better. That aside, Percy looked upset.

“I'm... sorry for worrying you”, whispered Percy softly. “I'm just... I'm not used to having people worry about me. Mom was working so much, she didn't notice when I was gone for a couple of hours or a day. I just... I don't... I don't want to go back to him.”

“We know that”, said Hades and nodded. “He won't get you back, Percy.”

“It's not just that!”, stated Percy and looked up at the two adults, tears shining in his eyes. “I don't want to leave. I want to stay with you. I want to stay here. Please don't let them take me away.”

This time, not even Hades' tender touch could keep Poseidon. The man rushed over to his son and pulled him into a tight hug. Percy leaned into it, burying his face in his father's chest. Hades stood and walked over to the two, wrapping his arms around them protectively. All too soon, the other Jacksons and di Angelos joined them. Tyson, of course, sneaked in between the taller family members' legs to lay his arms around Percy's legs, snuggling up to him.

“Don't worry, fratellone, papà will fight every dragon that wants to take you”, declared Tyson.

“What... is going on?”, asked Bianca reluctantly.

“Let's move this to the living room. We do have serious business to discuss”, sighed Hades, ushering their children over to the couches. “You all should know what's happening.”

Percy came to sit between Poseidon and Nico, with Tyson on his lap, cuddled up to him like an attention-starved puppy. Percy started to caress the little boy's hair. Hades stood in front of them.

“You know that Percy is with us because of his mother's passing”, started Hades slowly. “His stepfather... I arranged for him to be arrested for child-abuse. We have proof enough with the testimony of Doctor Solace, former teachers of Percy and a recorded confession from his stepfather. Now he's claiming he had been forced to make that confession and he claims that all injuries came from fights Percy had gotten into at school. Apparently he does have quite a lot of witnesses for such fights and for Percy's... provocative behavior. To strengthen his claim, he wants to keep custody of Percy. If he appears like a caring stepfather, it would make the truth more doubtful.”

“That means... he wants to take Percy away from us?”, asked Triton with a frown.

“Indeed”, nodded Hades, rubbing his face with one hand. “Though since he can't make bail, the judge agreed that for the time of the trial, Percy can indeed stay here with us. As foster parents, for now. And don't be fooled, we _will_ win this. Once Gabriel is behind bars, the matter of his custody-claim will be done and over with too. It's just... going to be a fight. A fight where I wish to keep all of you out of. Still, you should know that it is happening.”

“Can't we do anything to help?”, asked Thanatos, his arms crossed over his chest.

“I'm afraid not”, sighed Hades and shook his head. “We have to trust our DA, which I do. Regardless of how often I stood on the opposite side of her, I know that Nemesis is capable.”

“But what if she loses?”, whispered Percy, barely audible, eyes downcast.

“Then we will fight tooth and nail to get custody”, promised Hades seriously. “You're staying here. You're part of our family now and no one will take you away from here. Not as long as Poseidon and I have _any_ say in the matter and any... means of persuasion left. I firmly believe that even on the low chances of your stepfather getting out of this, that the right amount of money may convince him that he truly doesn't want to have custody over you.”

“So in the worst case scenario you're going to _buy_ me?”, snorted Percy.

“Yay! Daddy and papà can buy me my own Percy?”, asked Tyson giddily. “That's good! Because I don't like sharing my Percy with Nico and Jason all the time! Can I buy Percy? Then he's all mine!”

That helped lightening the mood, making the family laugh softly. Percy leaned down and kissed Tyson's nose. He really didn't want to leave. He... loved them. He loved this family. For the first time in his life, he felt like he had an actual family. Yes, he has had his mother and he would forever love her, but it had only been the two of them and even so, they had cowered in constant fear of Gabe. Now, he was just... happy. He was happy and he felt loved. He never wanted to leave.

“How about we relieve ourselves of those dark thoughts and do something fun?”, suggested Poseidon, one arm around Percy's shoulders. “Your arm is better, right? How about we go to our lake and swim some. It's surprisingly warm today. Last chance to catch a tan.”

“Can we?”, asked Tyson and Percy, sounding equally giddy as they turned begging eyes on him.

“Those two are definitely brothers”, chuckled Jason amused.

“Swimming! I'll call Frank and Leo! And the girls!”, exclaimed Hazel and rushed out.

 

/break\

 

Percy was the last one to approach the lake. Poseidon and Hades were laying on deckchairs, each with a book in their hands. Rachel was sitting at the beach, building a sandcastle with Tyson and Ella. Jason, Nico, Frank, Alabaster, Ethan and Chris were playing water-ball. Reyna, Clarisse, Annabeth, Piper, Bianca and Thalia were sitting together and playing a card-game. Hazel was laying between Leo's legs, a little farther away and out of sight from Hades and Poseidon, heatedly making out with the Latino. Triton and Thanatos were sitting on deckchairs too, discussing something. Percy was feeling self-conscious as he approached them all. It was why he was the last to arrive. He felt uncomfortable, with the scars littering his body.

“Percy!”, called Jason out loudly. “Come on in! Where have you been?”

His arms wrapped around his torso, he approached the other boys. They stared. Of course they did. He had a lot of scars, especially so on his back. He shifted some, uncomfortable. Everyone was looking at him, some of their stared practically boring into his very soul.

“You were right, Rachel. He does have a cute bum”, commented Piper to break the ice.

The others started snickering and laughing and Percy found himself relaxing a little. Nico walked up to him and laid one arm around his shoulders, guiding him over to them. Percy couldn't help but stare at that olive-skinned six-pack. Swimming sure had an upside. And Nico was so warm and firm, he felt amazing pressed against Percy like that, skin on skin.

“You owe me a race”, stated Percy after a moment.

“I suppose I do”, agreed Nico with a smirk. “But... it would be more fun with something at stake.”

“A little bet?”, questioned Percy intrigued. “I'm not sure what I'd have to offer that you'd want.”

Nico bit his tongue to keep from saying what exactly he wanted. “If I win, you get to bring Tyson to school for a month. Normally I have to, but that takes away from my special time with Jason...”

“Like you don't get enough of that”, snorted Percy and shook his head. “Okay, fine.”

“And what do you want if you win?”, asked Nico curiously.

“ _When_ I win”, corrected Percy with a smirk. “And I'll tell you once I win, mh?”

“Fine by me”, shrugged Nico. “I'm going to win anyway.”

“Boys!”, called Clarisse loudly. “Betting pool is over here. Who's in?”

The other boys ran out of the lake to join the girls, all placing their money on one of two piles. Percy had to stare. They were teenagers, but the amount of money on that blanket was more than his mother had made in one month. He liked them, yes, but damn, those were spoiled brats.

“Get ready!”, called Jason out. “Ready? Good. Go!”

Everybody had gathered around the lake, watching in utter fascination how the two started their race from one end to the small lake to the other. Poseidon stared amused. Percy was like a fish in water, his movement was so fluent and elegant. And he was fast. He was back at their shore before Nico, pulled into a victorious hug by the other teens who cheered him on. Percy was smiling and blushing as Ethan patted his back and Reyna ruffled his hair and everyone acted as though he had just done something incredible. All his life, the only one who had ever cheered him on had been his mother. Now he had siblings and two parents and apparently also friends.

“Okay, okay, you win”, panted Nico as he caught up with them. “Now tell me, what do you want?”

“Nothing”, shrugged Percy nonchalantly and walked over to their fathers to sit on a deckchair.

“Nothing?”, repeated Nico with a frown. “But we had a bet. You have to want something.”

Percy laid down on the chair and closed his eyes as the sun hit his face. “I already have everything I ever wanted. There's nothing else I want, really.”

“I found out there's a whole shop dedicated to _Doctor Who_ in London...”, drawled Nico.

Percy's eyes were open wide and large as his head snapped over to Nico. “W—What?”

Nico smirked broadly. “I googled it. It's called  _The Who Shop_ . I'll take you shopping there when we're in London. My treat. No argument allowed, Percy Jackson.”

“Your wallet will suffer”, warned Percy amused and stretched some.

Nico couldn't help but watch how Percy's lean body moved. It was captivating. The delicious muscles, the as of yet pale skin, regardless of the scars marring it. He was just too beautiful.

 

/break\

 

After a fun late morning with the family and his new friends, Percy took a nice, hot shower. The water in the lake was bitter cold. Once he was nicely warm again, he left his bathroom – he had his own bathroom, still getting used to _that_. Smiling to himself, he entered his bedroom. He needed to get ready, because Nico had already threatened him with a whole day of learning. Math and literature today, geography and biology tomorrow. And Monday... school. Nico would keep helping him with his grades and Rachel and Piper had promised to help him too yesterday.

“Oh. Uhm, hey dad”, greeted Percy surprised when he saw his father sitting on his bed.

“Your conversation with Nico at the lake... it made me think”, started Poseidon, looking uncomfortable. “I've tried to find a way to approach this topic for some time now, but you've acted so offensive whenever the topic comes to money. Specifically our family's money.”

“Where are you going with this?”, asked Percy curiously and sat down next to Poseidon.

“Pocket money. For one”, stated Poseidon and handed Percy enough money for him to buy food and everything for a month. “Everyone of our children gets the same amount of money every month. Well, aside from Tyson. He's still small, so he gets less, but you teenagers all get the same money each month. I know you'll probably see this as too much and as charity of sorts, but you're my son and you will get the same as all our other children. If you feel uncomfortable about it, put it onto your bank account and save up for an apartment or a car when you're older.”

“I don't have a bank account”, pointed Percy out, staring at the money.

“You do. Hades and I arranged that a few days ago”, replied Poseidon. “Which also brings me to my next point. We got you a bank account, here's your credit card. We also got you an account with money for college. Granted, we had started those of the others earlier, but we put as much into it as is in the other accounts right now. Also no arguing allowed. You're my son and I want you to have the same chance at a good college education as all my other children.”

“I wasn't going to argue”, whispered Percy softly. “I mean, I wouldn't have _asked_ for the money, but Hades already promised me a good education too and I was sort of expecting this conversation. I get that you want to make up for years of birthdays and Christmases missed by trying to give me a secure future and all and I appreciate it. I... Thank you, dad.”

Poseidon smiled surprised as he suddenly had both arms full of Percy, hugging him tightly. “And one more thing – don't look at me like that, I swear it's the last thing for today – here. You  _need_ a cellphone, because I was worried out of my mind when you ran off yesterday. I understand that this, with so many people, is difficult and new for you and that you may need a moment to you every now and then, but... at the very least, send me a text that you're safe and where you are if you do so. And in case something ever happens, you can always call one of us and we will come.”

Percy stared at the smartphone in his hand. He more or less knew how those things worked – he had played enough Angry Birds on Bianca's phone while he had been on bed-rest. Opening up the address book, he saw that the numbers of every family member were already saved – Dad, Papà, Papà Work, Thanatos, Triton, Bianca, Nico, Hazel. Percy smiled softly. So many people who cared.

“Okay. That's it. I'm done”, sighed Poseidon with a smile of his own. “But Nico and Jason have another surprise for you. After your lessons. No getting distracted, my boy.”

Percy nodded hastily, surprising Poseidon by kissing his cheek. “Thanks, dad. Really.”

Poseidon smiled fondly as he watched his son running out of the room.

 

/break\

 

Jason was laying on his back, playing with Percy's new phone. Math really wasn't his favorite subject, so he let Percy and Nico have it while busying himself with another important task. Saving all the numbers of their friends into Percy's phone. Like his own, Frank's, Leo's, Rachel's...

“I'm kinda surprised you just willingly agreed to it”, stated Jason casually, interrupting Nico in the middle of a lecture (which earned him a glare from the Italian). “I mean, Nico told me you have been putting up a fight against the 'fancy' ever since you arrived here.”

“That was when I still planned on leaving as soon as possible”, shrugged Percy. “If I want to stay here, I guess I need to get used to some of it. I'll never be as much of a spoiled brat as you guys, betting so much money on a simple swim-race, really now. But a phone, yeah, I can see where that may come in handy. I'm a bit bugged by the... pocket money, because it's ridiculously much.”

“Enough with the chit-chat! We have work to do!”, exclaimed Nico annoyed, snapping the ruler against his hand hard, gaining both their attention. “Behave yourselves, you brats.”

“Yes, teacher, sorry, teacher!”, yelped Jason and Percy, jumping half a foot high in surprise.

“You better be sorry, or the next time that thing comes down, it'll be on your behinds”, threatened Nico, waving the ruler a little as a warning. “Now, who knows what I just said before?”

Percy and Jason were blushing furiously as they stared doe-eyed up at Nico.

 

/break\

 

Percy's head was aching _horribly_ as he followed Jason and Nico obediently out of the mansion. The only reason why he hadn't holed up in his bed to rest after this exhausting ordeal of math was because Poseidon had talked about a present for him. They collected the other di Angelos and Jacksons on their way to the back-yard. First his dad, then Bianca, Hazel, Tyson, followed by Triton and Thanatos and in the end even Hades. Whatever it was, everybody seemed to know aside from Percy. They walked farther away from the mansion than Percy had ever been before. While still staying on their grounds. It was a shame, truly, that he had not yet explored his family's home properly. The farther they went, the more curious he grew. A shed? No, a barn. No...

“Stables?”, asked Percy dumbfounded. “You have _stables_ on your property?”

“No”, replied Poseidon and shook his head. “ _We_ have stables on _our_ property, Percy.”

Percy flushed and stared. Poseidon smiled and rested one hand on his son's shoulder.

“You need to meet Rainbow! He's all nice and fluffy and sweet and mine!”, exclaimed Tyson.

“Who's Rainbow?”, asked Percy curiously, smiling at his little brother.

“Rainbow is the pony we bought for Tyson”, replied Hades. “Even though Poseidon had been very much against the notion of giving him one, my love soon changed his mind after I bought _him_ a horse. After that, well, Poseidon discovered his love for those big, frightening animals-”

“Hades is afraid of horses. I find that endearing”, interrupted Poseidon with a teasing grin.

Hades glared at his boyfriend before continuing. “Tyson, Hazel, Nico and Bianca each own their own horse. Well, Tyson owns a pony because he's too small for a real horse.”

“And ponies are more awesome! I wanted a unicorn though... like Twilight Sparkle...”, frowned Tyson upset. “But daddy says there are no unicorns in real. So I got Rainbow instead!”

They entered the stables and Percy marveled at the beauties inside. His... siblings took their places aside one horse each. Bianca's was a pretty, peanut-butter colored stallion, Nico's a pitch-black stallion that held storm in his eyes, Hazel's was brown too and looked like a real wild-spirit, while Tyson's was an adorable, little pony, nudging Tyson's head softly. There were two more. A proud, white stallion who just got patted by Poseidon and another stallion, black and handsome.

“This is Pegasus, he's mine”, smiled Poseidon, caressing Pegasus' white mane. “Bianca's is named Scipio, Nico's is Tempest, next to Hazel is Arion and Tyson already introduced Rainbow.”

“What about you?”, asked Percy with a frown, turning to Thanatos and Triton.

“We already graduated by the time dad came up with this and with college, well, we're a little too busy to tend to our own horses. We barely spend more time than sleep and eating here and once we're out of college, we'll also be out of the house. That aside, Thanatos shares papà's fear of horses”, answered Triton and laughed a little. “I occasionally borrow Pegasus though.”

“A college fund is one thing, a cellphone okay, but I am _not_ accepting a _horse_! I swear, if I find car-keys in my shoes tomorrow morning, I'll go and live with Leo!”, exclaimed Percy.

“I'm sure Leo would like that”, laughed Hazel amused. “He really likes you.”

“Let me rephrase it then”, hummed Poseidon with a mischievous smile. “This is Blackjack. Blackjack had been in a circus before, had been... mistreated badly. Uncontrollable is what they called him at the animal shelter where I found him. If I hadn't bought him, he would have gone to the knacker. But Hades, once he noticed my... obsession with horses, told me I was not to bring every hurt little pony in that I find on the streets. Metaphorically speaking, of course. Never found a pony on the streets before. So I decided to buy him for you. If you don't want him though, I suppose... we will have to bring him to the knacker after all...”

Percy glared at his father. “You are _so_ cheap! H—How am I supposed to say no now?!”

“I believe the whole point of my argument was to make any of your arguments utterly invalid”, chimed Poseidon with a broad, pleased grin. “Now, will you keep him or will he go?”

Percy continued to glare daggers at Poseidon before sighing in defeat. “Let's settle on  _this_ making up for the sixteen birthdays you missed and never talk about it again. Still, no car. Ever. If I ever want one, I'll buy it from the money  _I_ will save up and earn myself. Understood?”

Poseidon chuckled as he climbed onto Pegasus' back. “Absolutely. No car. A yacht perhaps then?”

“ _Dad_!”, exclaimed Percy loudly. “Stop it! Now!”

“Okay, okay! Maybe a bike then”, teased Poseidon. “Now, will you join me in a ride? I believe you still haven't seen all of di Angelo Manor? You coming too, bambini?”

Hazel, Bianca, Tyson and Nico were fast to climb their horses' backs. Jason followed on Nico's, knowing that Tempest liked him far better than Nico anyway. As he watched his new family all standing there and watching, he felt Hades' hand heavy on his shoulder.

“Go and join them, bambino. Thanatos, Triton and I will prepare dinner”, ushered Hades.

Percy's eyes sparkled as he reached his hand out for Blackjack. The stallion who had been bucking up before appeared all calm in the presence of Percy and Hades was startled with how much ease Percy got to sit on the mighty beast. The lawyer smiled fondly as he watched them riding off.

 

/break\

 

Riding had been a pain in the ass. Nico didn't like it too much, but he enjoyed riding with his dad and siblings. Dinner had been relatively... eatable. Only relatively though since neither Thanatos, Triton nor Hades were great cooks. All of that after hours of trying to beat math into the thick skulls of Jason and Percy. The Italian deemed it fit that he should be allowed to catch a break. 'A break' meant sitting between Jason's legs and sucking the blonde off like there was no tomorrow.

“Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck”, moaned Jason and bucked up into Nico's throat. “M—More...”

Nico smirked and cupped Jason's balls, handling them just the way Jason liked it until the blonde was whimpering in need. Teasing the underside of Jason's cock with his tongue, Nico easily made his boyfriend come. Coughing a little, he managed to catch it all and swallow. He got up and crawled to lay beside his lover, kissing Jason's pulse, which was racing fiercely.

“You know, your cock-sucking skills alone are reason enough to love you, Nico”, panted Jason and pulled Nico into a tight embrace, his lips trailing along Nico's collarbone. “I love you.”

“I gathered as much”, smirked Nico teasingly. “I love you too, Jay. And... thanks. For being so accepting that I spend so much time with Percy. For not being overly jealous.”

“Well, it's hard to be angry with Percy. He's adorableness incarnated”, huffed Jason with a pout. “You on the other hand, if I catch you being inappropriate with Percy without me, you'll suffer.”

“Without you?”, repeated Nico amused and laughed.

“I thought that much was obvious”, whispered Jason softly, kissing Nico.

 

/break\

 

“Hazel's room is farther down the hall. But you should know that.”

“Yes, well. I've come to spend some time with you”, chuckled Leo amused as he entered Percy's room. “You may believe it or not, but the key to a working threesome-relationship is that you trust each other and that you can also spend some one-on-one time together, without the third party feeling neglected or left out. Right now, Frank and Hazel are on a date together. That's how we often spend our weekends actually. Yesterday was me and Hazel, hence me being on the sleep-over, and tomorrow will be Frank and me. Always sitting on each other is what makes it complicated, always trying to include all three of us. So I thought I'd spend the time getting to know you better.”

“Cool”, nodded Percy with a grin and scooted over on his bed. “I'm watching _Doctor Who_. Join?”

“Most important and most obvious question first: Favorite Doctor?”, dared Leo impishly.

“Matt Smith”, replied Percy without missing a beat.

“Well... I don't think this friendship will work then”, frowned Leo and shook his head in mock concern. “Because no one is more awesome than David Tennant. So I should leave.”

“Or we watch _The Day of the Doctor_ together?”, offered Percy mischievously. “Because what's better than having one Doctor?” Both answered the same moment: “Three Doctors.”

“Though thinking like that, we could as well watch _Journey's End_ ”, mused Leo and sat down next to Percy on the bed. “I know, I know. No Matt Smith for you. But two Davids for me.”

Both giggled at that and Percy grabbed the bowl of popcorn to offer it to Leo before pressing play. He found it ridiculous to have a TV in his bedroom, but since he had one, why not use it? The two of them spend the whole night talking about  _Doctor Who_ and gossiping together.


	11. Jocks, Bullies and Clubs

Chapter 11: Jocks, Bullies and Clubs

 

“My name is Percy... Jackson. I'm sixteen and I recently moved here, because I moved in with my dad”, introduced Percy himself, shifting some. “I'm... looking forward to being in this school...”

“It's very nice to meet you, Percy Jackson”, nodded Mister Blofis amused. “Take a seat, please.”

Percy's new homeroom teacher at Homer High. A nice, older guy with salt-and-pepper hair. Percy sighed relieved and hurried to Grover and Leo – the two boys had kept an empty seat between them just for him. Grover grinned and patted Percy's back while Leo leaned in and ruffled Percy's hair. It was a relief to have both of them in his class. There were also others Percy knew – Grover's girlfriend Juniper, Rachel, Frank and Clarisse's boyfriend Chris.

“Do you have any idea what clubs you're going to join?”, whispered Leo curiously.

“Clubs?”, repeated Percy confused. “I plan on doing my time and not spending extra time!”

“Well, you have to join at least two extracurricular activities”, stated Grover with a shrug.

“Great”, groaned Percy and slumped in his chair.

“Mister Jackson, I know you're new and curious to learn more, but if you'd focus on my class for now, that would be wonderful”, interrupted Mister Blofis loudly.

He had made promises to various people to be a better student, so he tried to keep his attention on the teacher for the rest of class. After that, he let himself be dragged to the blackboard by Grover and Leo, who were both chatting loudly and simultaneously.

“Okay, that's... a lot of clubs”, muttered Percy when he saw all the different fliers.

“You have to join the gardening club!”, demanded Grover eagerly.

“No! We have a garage and a mechanics club!”, disagreed Leo, equally eager.

“I'll find something”, chuckled Percy, a little amused by his new friends' enthusiasm.

Not that what he was saying mattered any, because not ten minutes later and he found himself in the garden with Grover, Juniper and a bunch of other people of whom he had met a few on the barbeque. Flowers were pretty and all, but he didn't have a green thumb. And now he was all dirty.

“And here I thought they picked you up from the streets. Looks more like you're fresh out of the jungle”, commented a nasty and disgusted voice from behind Percy.

“Yeah, me Tarzan, you no Jane”, huffed Percy and rolled his eyes as he turned around.

Some of the kids on the hall snickered at that, but the goons behind the Asian Barbie looked intimidating. Percy flexed his hands. He knew the looks on their faces. Had encountered them often before. They wanted a fight. They wanted to see blood, maybe even bone.

“Cut it off, Drew”, demanded another voice and suddenly, Percy was stuck between his girls.

Piper was on one side of him, an elbow resting on Percy's shoulder as she glared at this Drew-girl. Next to her stood Hazel, her arms crossed over her chest. On Percy's other side were Annabeth and Rachel, all four girls giving the Asian the evil eye. She huffed and left.

“Why don't you accompany Piper and me to the meeting of the drama club?”, suggested Rachel.

Hazel and Annabeth stole him to kiss his cheeks before pushing him off to follow the girls. He wanted to argue that he needed to get clean, but as soon as he was inside the meeting hall for the drama club, where there was even a stage, he got pulled out of his clothes and stuffed into fancy Victorian clothes anyway and all of a sudden, he was the Juliet to Piper's Romeo.

“Is that what you do?”, grunted Percy and stared into a mirror. “Put boys into dresses?”

“When we get the chance to do so”, giggled Rachel mischievously. “We wanted to give it a different spin, try out with boys as the girls and girls as the boys, basically.”

Percy frowned and took the text-book from Rachel, starting to read some lines out together with Piper. It was actually fun. He loves acting. He had done years of it when he had to hide Gabe's abuse. But _this_ , this was the fun kind of acting. And Piper was good. And she looked great in the old guy's clothes. Maybe he'd sign up for it, being an actor sounded like something fun to do.

 

/break\

 

Around lunch, Nico and Jason were doing what they did best. Sneaking around to make out. Though as they were behind the gym, they heard sounds. Sounded like a fight. Frowning annoyed, Jason pushed Nico off and walked around the corner, just to be surprised to find some of the guys who followed pretty Drew like lost puppies, cornering Percy. Nico and Jason saw red, growled and lunged at the goons. Percy was left laying on the ground, staring stunned as Nico and Jason started to pick a fight with the two large guys. It had been an eventful day so far. First recess he had gotten dragged to the gardening club, free period and Rachel and Piper had abducted him to play Juliet and second recess Leo had blown up a car in the garage (it had been a _very_ short visit to the car club). And now that lunch came around, Percy had thought hiding behind the gym would save him from the crazy people of Myosotis Lane who had gotten so weirdly attached to him. And then the two guys who had obvious crushes on this Drew girl had found him.

“What the fuck are you two doing?! Stop it!”, exclaimed Percy and grabbed Nico before he could land another punch in Big Guy #1's face. “Stop it now, you loons!”

The moment Jason and Nico stopped, the other two guys were clever enough to run off, knowing that against all three of them, they wouldn't stand a chance. Jason wiped the blood off the corner of his mouth as he collapsed on the grass. Nico was shaking his hand, cursing slightly.

“Don't ever do that again, you idiots”, hissed Percy with a fierce glare, earning him confused looks from both others. “If you two end up at the principal's office because you got into a fight because of _me_ , what kind of impression does that make of me?! The bad influence. _Again_. I—I...”

“I've gotten into fights for about all my siblings before”, stated Nico and sat up some, resting one hand on top of Percy's. “Don't think dad or papà would be angry at you for getting pushed around, Percy. Don't expect to be alone with that stuff anymore. Now, what did they want?”

“Nothing. They were angry that I talked back to this snappy cheerleader-chick earlier”, shrugged Percy and sighed. “I just wanted some peace of mind. Everyone has been pulling on me like I'm some kind of doll all day. I just want to curl together someone and not think...”

Jason frowned and took a look at his watch. “Crap. We're running late. Look, why don't you just come with us, Perce? You could hide out with the club. Don't have to participate. Just sit and relax.”

“What kind of club?”, asked Percy curiously as he ran after the two boys.

He was still a little flustered about the fact that they had just gotten into a fight to back him up without any second thought. It was strange, having people care for him in such a way.

“Mythomagic”, stated Jason mischievously, taking Percy's hand to pull him along so he didn't get lost. “Frank and Leo are in it too. Well, Leo out of the same reasons as I. To please his boyfriend.”

“Mythomagic?”, repeated Percy and turned to Nico with a shit-eating grin. “You're a _nerd_.”

“Says the one who keeps babbling on about _Doctor Who_ ”, muttered Nico beneath his breath.

Percy and Jason exchanged a grin. The club was meeting in the basement, which really made Percy laugh somehow. Honestly, he had no idea what Nico was talking about, but he was pretty sure the Italian was trying to explain the game to him, demonstrating it as he played with Frank (both boys talking at top speed at the same time). And even though Percy didn't understand, he didn't really mind. It was cute how enthusiastic and nerdy Nico could get about this, really.

 

/break\

 

Percy smiled a little strained when he noticed that he seemed to be under constant surveillance after that. He was equally annoyed and happy, which was a strange combination. He appreciated that he suddenly had people who cared about him, but on the other hand, he also had no idea how to deal with suddenly being surrounded by so many people at all times. It was unusually stressful.

“You're so cute”, sighed the tall blonde next to Percy, having her arms around his shoulder. “Have you ever thought about wearing a skirt? I'd love to have you on our cheerleading squad.”

“With all due respect, Silena, but... not a fucking chance in hell”, grunted Percy with a glare.

Silena's boyfriend on Percy's other side laughed loudly at that. “Then perhaps you'd like to join our football team? You're strong, after all. You'd be a good addition for our team.”

“Thanks, Beckendorf”, grinned Percy faintly. “But... no. Too violent for my taste.”

“You've been in Nico's nerd cave, you went gardening with Grover and blew up a car with Leo... and you still haven't found a club yet?”, asked Hazel concerned as she caught up to them. “Well, if Silena and Beckendorf would excuse you, I'll bring you to the must-go club.”

“Must-go club?”, asked Percy curiously as he waved Silena and her boyfriend goodbye.

“Yup. For our family anyway”, confirmed Hazel, linking arms with Percy. “Dad says it's necessary for us to learn how to cook, for when we're leaving for college or living on our own later. So everyone has to join the cooking club at our school so we learn the basics.”

Percy was positively gaping when they entered the large kitchen. And then he hastily fumbled with his new phone to take as many pictures as possible. Nico was wearing a black apron lined with lace and with a skull on the front. He had flour all over his face and in his hair as he was fussing over something, trying to swat Jason's hand away as the blonde tried to add some ingredients into the bowl they were working on. Jason's apron was blue and frilly, with a giant bow in the back. It was the most adorable thing Percy had ever seen. Frank and Leo weren't bad either though. Leo's apron had a dragon on it and there was the most mischievous and devious look on his face as Frank quite obviously tried to keep him from making the kitchen go boom ('one explosion per day, Valdez!', was what Bianca was calling from two rows behind). Bianca was teamed up with Thalia Grace and they looked both less than joyful – or successful. The stuff in their bowl was surely not edible.

“Today, you'll be mine”, declared Hazel with a smile. “We always mix it up some so no one is left out or favored since I can't team with Frank and Leo all the time. You okay with that?”

He liked Hazel, after all. And he liked cooking. With a last look at the cute picture he had just taken of Jason and Nico, he put his phone aside and grabbed an apron (pink. Thank you very much for leaving the pink apron for him). Rolling up his sleeves, he got to work with much enthusiasm.

 

/break\

 

Percy was sitting with his feet in Leo's lap, leaning back against the counter with his elbows. The Latino didn't mind at all, he was too busy devouring what Percy had cooked. So was everybody else. Thalia and Bianca were fighting over meatballs, while Hazel and Frank were feeding each other. Leo was fine stuffing his face on his own, actually. Others from the cooking class had come to see why the Jackson di Angelos were so obsessive too, which was how Percy got to meet Octavian, Alabaster and Calypso again. Everyone kept praising him, which was a strange thing for Percy. He had never been praised for anything by anyone aside from his mother.

“Where did you learn to cook like that, Perce?”, asked Jason (albeit it sounded more like 'Ere id u earn ou ok I et, er?' because his mouth was so full) before gulping. “It's delicious.”

“Well, my mom was always working double-shifts and...”, started Percy before pausing for a moment. “And my stepfather was less likely to beat me up when he was too busy eating. So I learned how to cook difficult and distracting meals.”

There was a pain flashing through Nico's eyes as he slowly put the food down. Somehow, knowing why Percy could cook like that made the food taste less good to him. But Jason elbowed him with a glare, indicating that he shouldn't insult Percy by looking upset. Right. Percy didn't want pity. Sighing softly to himself, Nico took another bite while ruffling Percy's hair with his other hand.

“You are on your way to become Tyson's most favorite person ever”, stated Nico playfully.

“So... after this, am I finally dismissed for the day? It was stressful”, asked Percy casually.

“Dismissed?”, grunted Octavian confused. “If you break down on your first day...”

“I was gardening, repairing a car, learned a card-game, cooked a five-course meal, played the Juliet to Piper's Romeo and somewhere in between, I also had classes”, deadpanned Percy. “I'm tired.”

“So your siblings dragged you through their clubs, huh?”, laughed Calypso amused.

Percy remembered her from the gardening club. Nodding faintly, he got a little more comfortable, which resulted in him leaning against Nico's side, who still had his hand resting on top of Percy's head. The fingers grew more tender in their movement as they combed through his unruly hair.

“Yeah, it's over for today”, smiled Nico kindly, kissing the top of Percy's hair in an innocent way.

Before Percy had any chance to blush at the contact, Jason continued for his boyfriend. “Tomorrow however is an entirely different matter. You'll try out for the football team, I already told our captain that. And Nico plans on dragging you to practice with the swim-team. Reyna suggested to take you to her fencing classes too and I think that Bia had plans for you too...”

“Our archery club”, nodded Bianca with a confident smile. “You'll love archery.”

“You could come to the book club with me and Annabeth tomorrow too”, offered Octavian.

“The science project”, interjected Alabaster with a wicked grin. “Right, Leo?”

“Yes!”, exclaimed Leo with glowing eyes. “It's like chemistry, just way cooler! It's the only club where I'm actually _allowed_ to make things go boom! You _have_ to come with us!”

Percy blinked, with those large, green eyes of him, before he just turned enough to hide his face in Nico's chest. This earned him a hearty laughter from all others and more than one person ruffling his hair. He really didn't care at that moment. He just wanted to sleep.

 

/break\

 

The next day found him with the archers on the field behind the school, because he couldn't deny his new sister. It took ten minutes before Bianca, Zoe, Phoebe and Thalia slowly lowered their bows again, staring with wide eyes. Their coach, the mother of Zoe and Phoebe, was laying on the ground, cursing beneath her breath and holding her butt. Where an arrow was sticking out of. They should get an ambulance, or check on Artemis, but they were simply too shocked to do anything.

“Oh god, I am _so_ sorry!”, exclaimed Percy with wide and guilty eyes.

“I wish to _never_ see you anywhere _near_ a bow again!”, exclaimed Artemis loudly.

Followed by a string of curses. Others from the archery club – Will, Kayla and Austin – hurried to help her up, Kayla already with the phone at her ear. Bianca hastily walked up to her new brother.

“Percy, are you alright?”, whispered Bianca.

“I... I'm sorry”, whispered Percy, looking more than just upset, tears gathering in his eyes.

“It wasn't your fault. It was an accident”, assured Bianca softly and leaned in to kiss his forehead.

 

/break\

 

Two hours later had Octavian sitting in the library, looking displeased. He wasn't the only one. Annabeth, Malcolm and Rachel kept sniffing the air too, looking confused. Percy shifted.

“What is this smell?”, asked Octavian after a while, putting his book down loudly.

“Eh...”, stammered Percy embarrassed, twirling a singing strand of black hair on his head. “I uhm... was visiting the science club with Lou Ellen, Alabaster and Leo. When Travis and Connor came... eh... Let's just say, what happens in the chem labs, stays in the chem labs.”

“I only wish that would also go for the smell”, muttered Octavian with a glare.

“Can't we focus on this book?”, pleased Percy, even more embarrassed. “What's it about anyway?”

“It's about a man who one day wakes up to find himself slowly turning into a cockroach”, started Annabeth, taking pity on him. “It's a very famous book by Kafka and...”

 

/break\

 

Another two hours – and two aspirin to get rid of his Kafka-inducted headache – later found Percy somewhere where he felt far better. In a gym, facing Reyna one-on-one with weird not-swords.

“It's strange, but it's kinda like swordplay, just in fancy”, observed Percy with a grin. “I like it.”

“You're good”, nodded Reyna as she dodged him. “Very good.”

“State champion”, smirked Percy as he had her pinned. “And not for nothing.”

While the two bantered, Jason and Nico were sitting on a bench, watching. Their fingers were itching to steal Percy away so he could try out for their sport-teams respectively, but they were also completely captivated by the way Percy moved. It was mesmerizing. And arousing.

“He'll join the football-team”, declared Jason determined, glaring.

“I love you, Jay, but Percy will join the swim-team”, stated Nico with a frown.

Both grunted as they got clapped on the shoulders so hard that they nearly fell off the bench. “That cute, little panda-baby will join my fencing club. You pansies stay away from our new mascot.”

“Panda-baby?”, asked Nico and blinked a couple of times.

“Saw him when he came out of the chem lab earlier. Covered in soot, aside from where the lab glasses were. Made him look like a panda”, nodded Clarisse. “The panda baby will be our mascot.”

She glared at them the most dangerous way possible and Jason and Nico found it hard to disobey. Not that they were giving up on their new sport-ace that easily. They just didn't want to argue with the most brutal force in their school – Clarisse la Rue.

 

/break\

 

Percy used the force of the kitten-eyes to get out of football-try-outs – apparently that was not his sport. But at least that gave Jason the opportunity to watch Percy and Nico nearly naked and wet, swimming against each other. For that, he could even sacrifice the joy of having Percy on his team. It was quite obvious that this was Percy's element. He had seen it at the house already, but now in the big pool, it was even more obvious. Percy belonged into the water.

“Go panda-baby!”, called Jason out loudly as Percy beat Nico.

The brightly smiling sea-green eyed boy looked confused for a second before waving him.

 

/break\

 

Monday and Tuesday had not been the only days where his new friends and family had assigned him to try out for different clubs. He found himself in a dog-asylum with Reyna and Rachel on Wednesday, but he knew that the animal care club wasn't his thing – he loved them too much, he would end up feeling horrible for not being able to take them all home with him.

Art classes with Rachel, Lacy, Calypso and Hazel were fun, even though he couldn't draw shit. But the class assigned him to regularly come over as a model instead. It was embarrassing, but apparently he had such a captivating smile and such a good physique. He couldn't deny them.

Choir on Tuesday with Grover and Will had been a _disaster_. He couldn't hit a note, not even if his life would depend on it and neither of the boys had believed him. Until he stood there and sang. He had actually been _thrown out_ of that club by a cursing and hissing teacher. Not that he minded.

And Friday he had thought what the heck and signed up for cheerleading try-outs. Which was where he currently was. Standing in front of an overly pleased and happy Silena who was practically radiating an 'I always get what I want'-aura and a more than pissed-off co-captain. Drew Tanaka. The reason why Percy was here right now. He had no intentions of actually joining the cheerleader-squad, but he had every intention of pissing the bully off.

“I can't believe he's actually trying ou...”, muttered Nico, losing his words half-way.

Jason next to him actually didn't mind, because he was staring as intensely at the way Percy's leg was bend behind his head as Nico was. Their minds were at the same place. Bianca and Hazel huffed, each hitting one of the boys upside the head from where they sat in the row behind them.

“He's... flexible”, stated Frank next to Hazel surprised. “Leo, go and ask him to teach you that.”

“W—Why me?!”, exclaimed the flustered Latino with a glare.

 

/break\

 

It was already late when Poseidon sneaked into Percy's bedroom. He had meant to check on Tyson, but the boy was missing, so he supposed the youngest was most likely with Percy. A smile slid onto Poseidon's lips as he saw both his sons curled together in a tight, snoring embrace.

“Ey, dad...”, yawned Percy, blearily blinking his eyes open.

“I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you, I just wanted to make sure Tyson is safe”, whispered Poseidon and sat down to caress Percy's hair. “Though... I'm a little worried about you... You're so exhausted this whole week. It's barely past eight and you're out like a candle. If this was too early after your... ordeal, please tell me and we'll take you off again for some.”

“It's not school that's so exhausting, it's all my siblings”, muttered Percy and stretched some. “They dragged me from one club to the next the whole week. I barely got a second to myself.”

“Clubs, huh?”, asked Poseidon intrigued. “Which ones did you try out? And did you find something that actually interests you or did you just humor your siblings?”

“A bit of both”, grinned Percy sleepily and scooted closer to rest his head in Poseidon's lap. “I accidentally shot the archery coach. So... I'm not joining the archery club and Coach Nightshade's twin-brother is jumping in as coach until she gets back. And I accidentally helped Leo blow up a car in the mechanics club. And we blew up the chem lab, but that was less of an accident and I blame the Stolls most of all. I planted a tree too, with Grover. And I think that Will has a tinnitus because of my voice, so the choir doesn't really want me to join either. I wanted to join the animal care club, but... I think I'd end up taking every single one of them home with me...”

“Ah, you're like me when it comes to that”, laughed Poseidon, still caressing Percy's hair.

“I'll also not join the book club, because that gave me a headache and confused me”, continued Percy, frowning. “And I'm not artsie enough for art classes, but they want me to model for them.”

“That's a lot of clubs you won't join”, observed Poseidon curiously. “Didn't you find anything?”

“I'll join the swim team”, whispered Percy with a soft smile. “I love it. And the captain isn't shabby either. And the drama club, because it's real fun. I don't know about the cooking club, because I already know how to cook, but... it's so nice to cook with others, so maybe... And fencing! It's nearly kinda like swordplay and I really like Reyna and Clarisse, the two captains!”

“So your first week was good then?”, asked Poseidon with a proud and happy smile.

“I don't really know...”, admitted Percy and averted his eyes. “There is this girl, Drew. She... started picking on me on the first day. I'm not good at letting that stand, but I _swear_ I didn't get into a fight or anything. I paid her back by showing off at the cheerleading try-outs.”

“You tried out for cheerleading? To solve a problem?”, snorted Poseidon amused, ruffling Percy's hair. “That's my boy. Don't... let such things get to you. And... thanks for telling me. But I'd prefer it if you'd tell me right away from now on if someone is causing you trouble, because I love you.”

Percy blushed a little and nodded, a small smile on his lips. He had people who loved him.


	12. Moving On (to London)

Chapter 12: Moving On (to London)

 

Gabriel Ugliano's trial would start at the end of October. And Hades was not going to let his little boy be dragged into the middle of all of this, so he made plans. Distracting plans.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!”

Hades grunted a little as Percy basically suffocated him with a hug. His plans were apparently very good, considering that this was the fifth time that the boy was thanking him. First, when he had first announced his plans to the family, then when everyone was packing, the morning when they left the house, when they got out of the car and now that they were standing at the airport.

“Would you mind stopping with the thanks, it makes me feel like an ungrateful brat”, said Leo.

Percy turned toward the Latino, a sheepish grin on his lips. They were going to _London_. It wasn't unusual for the di Angelos to go on vacation in summer and autumn, but they had taken the one place Percy was dying to see because of _him_. Oh, and when Percy said the di Angelos, that apparently included Jason, Frank and Leo too. It had been a bit of a surprise for Percy that Hades was this generous. So now the twelve of them were on their way to the check-in.

“That aside, it's too damn early for your cheerfulness”, yawned Triton with a glare.

“Where's Herakles?”, inquired Percy curiously. “I mean, it's take-your-boyfriend-to-London-week.”

“He's... not a fan of family vacations”, shrugged Triton, ruffling Percy's hair harshly.

The younger boy grinned and winced a little. The teen noted how Thanatos had one arm around the sleepy oldest Jackson-boy. Unlike Triton, Thanatos looked more than pleased that Herakles wasn't one for vacations. Percy was really growing curious about their relationship.

“Here are your tickets for the check-in”, interrupted Poseidon and handed out their tickets.

Percy was sitting at the window, next to Jason. That was a relief, because Percy was  _nervous_ . And he grew more and more nervous as they went through their check-in. Percy was fumbling with his ticket and with his passport (new passport. The very first time Percy read the name Perseus Lir Jackson. Looking at the letters made him giddy and happy). Until Nico covered Percy's hand with his and offered him a small smile. From there on out, Percy followed the Italian's lead.

“Your hands are clam”, noted Nico, but his grip tightened when Percy wanted to pull away. “Not a complain, just an observation. You're nervous, aren't you? There's no need for that.”

“N—No need?”, huffed Percy wide-eyed. “We're inside of a gigantic metal-bird that's supposed to fly over the _ocean_! This thing is too heavy, I don't even get how it can fly at all! And even so, if it crashes in the ocean, we're all _lost_! We can hardly swim to England!”

“Percy”, interrupted Jason and tugged him close to whisper into his ear. “Calm down. You're going to freak the other passengers out. It's going to be fine. We've been flying for years, dozens of times.”

Percy took a deep breath and sat down, pressed against the small, roundish window. Jason sat down next to him and Nico was on Jason's other side, holding the blonde's hand. Hades, Poseidon and Tyson were in the row in front of them, behind them were Frank, Hazel and Leo and behind them were Triton, Thanatos and Bianca. Tyson turned around on his seat, poking his head through the seats to look giddily at Percy, bright smile on his lips.

“Big brother! Can I have you when we're in the hotel?”, asked Tyson. “Daddy and papà always make me stay in their room, because everyone else is two people already! But now that you're here, can I have a room with you? I'll be all nice and well-behaved, I swear!”

“Well, you are seven now and Percy is quite responsible, so if Percy doesn't mind...”, stated Hades.

“You just want to have the room all to yourself and dad”, muttered Nico and rolled his eyes.

Poseidon blushed a little as he glared at Nico. “Or Tyson could share a room with Nico and Jason gets to stay with Percy, if Nico  _insists_ like that.”

“No! I wanna stay with Percy!”, whined Tyson with a pout. “Nikki is no fun!”

“Thanks a lot, brat”, snorted Nico, sticking his tongue out at the youngest.

“I'd like to share a room with you, Ty”, smiled Percy amused and leaned back.

He was buckled in and his fingers were clawed into the armrests. Jason smiled a little as he noticed the nervous wrecks next to him. He knew Nico didn't particularly enjoy flying either, but he was better at masking it. The blonde reached out and took both their hands, running his thumbs soothingly over the back of their hands. At first their grips were tight, but over the flight, they slowly relaxed and about half way to London, Percy even nodded off, cheek against Jason's shoulder, drooling a little. Jason smiled amused, Percy was just too cute.

 

/break\

 

“This is probably the most awesome building I've ever seen”, whispered Percy in awe.

They stood in front of their hotel, the Saint Pancras Renaissance London Hotel. It was a beautiful Gothic-styled palace, at least in Percy's opinion. Thanatos, Triton and Hades were busy heaving the suits out of the limo they had taken from the airport to the hotel, while Poseidon joined Percy. Tyson was obediently clinging to Poseidon's neck as his dad carried him.

“Let's get inside! The earlier we have our rooms, the earlier we can start exploring the city!”, declared Leo and grabbed Percy's hand to pull him along. “This will be _awesome_!”

“Woah, slow down, lion cub”, gasped Percy as he was dragged along. “What's the rush?”

“There is a shop in this city that is dedicated solemnly to the awesomeness that is Doctor Who”, pointed Leo out, staring at Percy like he was crazy for not knowing why he was excited. “And there is a museum that's part of the shop. A Doctor Who museum. I want to go there, as soon as possible.”

“Why only one, though?”, asked Jason a bit confused. “I mean, isn't Doctor Who like the second biggest export of the UK, right after the Beatles or something like that...?”

“Just because it takes place in London like seventy percent of the time doesn't mean it's being shot here. But yeah, the Brits are crazy for not making more out of this. I'm sure a lot of tourists come here and only know London from Doctor Who episodes...”, nodded Percy in agreement, frowning.

“I think one shop is enough, or otherwise we wouldn't get to spend any time with you kids at all”, chuckled Poseidon amused. “You can go there today, if you really have to, but we'll meet up again.”

“Okay, dad”, chorused Hazel, Nico and Percy obediently.

 

/break\

 

After dumping their stuff in their respective rooms, the family had gathered again to plan their first day. Since the combination of Leo's puppy-eyes and Percy's kitten-eyes was the ultimate doom, the six teenagers had gotten it through that they could go to The Who Shop today, while Poseidon, Hades, Triton, Thanatos, Bianca and Tyson wanted to go to the National Gallery, since the six teens had no interest in that anyway. The older family members would be meeting up with the teens in the Queen Elizabeth park because seeing the Olympic Park was something most of them could agree on. And with that decided, Percy and Leo led Hazel, Nico, Frank and Jason off.

“Barking Road...”, muttered Jason with a frown, staring at the map. “I don't see it.”

“Because it's not on the map”, pointed Frank out, glaring. “It's like two hours away from here!”

“Well, I'll call a limo then”, sighed Hazel, pulling her phone out.

“No!”, protested Percy, staring at them scandalized. “I'm not spending half of my very first vacation behind tinted glass, you spoiled brats! We'll take the underground, like normal tourists do.”

Nico had wanted to protest to that, much like the other 'spoiled brats', but half an hour and six Oyster tickets later had them all squeezed together in the Northern Line. Nico was holding onto a yellow metal pole with one hand and had the other resting on Percy's lower back, the younger boy pressed against his chest, Nico's chin on Percy's head while Jason was flush against Percy's back. Public transportation had been a _wonderful_ idea. Percy was blushing brightly where he was stuck between the two handsome boys, fingers clawed into Nico's shirt for support.

“We gotta get out at Monument and change into the green one”, called Leo out.

The Latino was sitting on Frank's lap, who had been the only one to get a seat. Hazel was standing in front of them, between Frank's legs, pressing against Leo's side. The Latino looked quite happy.

“And tomorrow we do all the touristy things, right?”, asked Percy, looking up at Nico.

“Define touristy things, because if that's code for more underground, no”, countered Nico.

“Big Ben and the London Tower and the Globe Theater and the Buckingham Palace and-”

“No”, interrupted Jason, looking horrified. “Percy, slow down. We have seven days here. We don't have to do everything on one day. Just relax. We can discuss what to do tomorrow with your parents at dinner tonight. Plan our week and all of that. For now, focus on the good Doctor.”

 

/break\

 

“Are you sure we're right?”, asked Frank, looking doubtfully up at the castle-like stadium.

Leo and Percy had the map between their hands, heads stuck together. Hazel was busy taking pictures of the odd-looking soccer stadium, while Jason and Nico were just holding hands, watching with amusement how Leo and Percy discussed where to go to now.

“We all own smartphones, we can just check for directions”, stated Nico after a moment.

“I lived for sixteen years without a smartphone, I'm not gonna ask my _phone_ where to go!”, protested Percy with a glare, hitting Nico with the map. “This way, I say! Follow my lead!”

“Alons-y!”, grinned Leo brightly and took Percy's hand again.

The other four exchanged amused and fond looks as they followed. Leo and Percy were still discussing in hushed voices if the way they went was the right one, but if Hazel, Nico, Frank and Jason noticed, they didn't comment. At the next crossroads, they went left and after five more minutes, they were rewarded – with high-pitched squeals from Percy and Leo. A blue front, with a large window showing off Daleks and shirts and 'Oh my gosh, I wanna have's, according to Leo and Percy at least. They obviously first took time to take pictures of their adorable little Whovians, hugging each other and grinning proudly while standing in front of the shop. Once inside, Nico and Frank were reduced to mules. Leo and Percy ran through the shop – back and forth, a circle, once again and repeat – and they thrust everything they wanted at their respective mules. Jason and Hazel were, after all, too busy documenting their cutie's adorableness. Once Percy was calmed down a little, he turned around, all bright and broad smiles. Until he saw Nico. Or rather, until he didn't see Nico, because the heap of shirts and toys was too high for him to see the Italian.

“Oh...”, muttered Percy with a frown, taking the things from Nico.

“What are you doing?”, asked Nico confused.

“I don't have that kind of money”, pointed Percy out. “I have to sort-”

“Like fuck you're sorting anything”, grunted Jason, thrusting a basket at Nico and starting to stuff the things Percy had picked out into the carrier. “You picked this stuff because you want it. So you'll get it. Nico already told you he'd take you shopping here, so don't worry about the price.”

“I'm not going to make Nico pay for all of this!”, hissed Percy with a glare. “I—I don't need a TARDIS pillow, or the bag. My bag is totally fine. And the bathroom robe isn't necessary either.”

“Dude!”, interrupted Leo, looking totally scandalized. “That's a TARDIS bag. You _need_ a TARDIS bag. And that's a TARDIS robe. How could that not be necessary? Now move your stubborn, little butt over here and help me picking out all the figures I need. And the ones _you_ need.”

Before Percy could open his mouth to protest, he was being pushed from behind by Jason and pulled by Leo. Hazel smiled softly as she kept filming them. There was something between Jason, Nico and Percy, something that was _more_ than just sibling-love and friendship and she knew it. She just hoped, for all their sake, that it won't end in a disaster.

“Who wants to unlock the TARDIS?”

Frank frowned concerned, fearing a cat-fight between Percy and Leo at that. The two had already freaked out when they had noticed the model-TARDIS in the corner (Frank didn't get it. It was just a blue wooden box. What's the big fuss?). But now the owner of the shop was offering them some key and both their eyes were sparkling as though it was a diamond-ring.

“That's _the_ key”, gasped Leo, mouth hanging open. “The key the Doctor gave Jack and Martha!”

“Go on and unlock it then”, smiled Percy, nudging the Latino.

Leo basically suffocated Percy in a grateful hug and while Leo was happily unlocking the model-TARDIS, Jason pulled Percy aside, giving him an inquisitive look. Percy just shrugged a little.

“Every Doctor has their own TARDIS and their own key. That's the tenth's TARDIS and key and Leo loves ten. It's fine”, whispered Percy with a small smile. “I just wanna go inside.”

Behind the model-TARDIS was a door hidden that led into the museum and even Nico had to grin at that – bigger on the inside, huh. It wasn't spacious, but there were real costumes and props from the show, as well as a real TARDIS console. Nico tuned them out a little as Leo and Percy fell over each other in their haste to explain every single piece exhibited.

 

/break\

 

Jason and Nico were laying curled together on a wooden lounger, completely exhausted after their little shopping trip. Hazel was all the while cooing while showing Poseidon and Bianca the videos and pictures she had taken of Leo and Percy. Percy and Tyson all the while were giggling and laughing as they ran through the water-fountains that shot up all over the place.

“They'll be soaked wet by the time we leave again”, noted Nico unimpressed.

“Well, then we'll just have to get them dry clothes at the mall”, shrugged Hades casually. “There is one, right at the exit of the park. And then we could grab a bite there. Taking into account that Thanatos and Triton will come back sometime. The aquatic center is really not that interesting.”

Getting Triton away from the Olympic aquatic center and getting Tyson and Percy out of the water-fountain was harder than anticipated, but a whiny, hungry Leo was a good way of convincing them. Together, and by now all of them quite exhausted, they made their way out of the park and into the shopping mall. Which turned out to have been a mistake, because there was a Disney-store in there. So once Tyson and Percy were clothed with new and dry clothes, the two rushed over into the Disney-store like they had never seen one before. Jason found it highly amusing that two Americans would be buying Disney merchandises in England, but damn, those two were just too cute.

“Look, look, look! Can I have Simba?!”

“Leo”, whined Hazel and shook her head. “Isn't it bad enough that Percy and Ty... Okay, fine.”

She wavered when Leo was holding a cute, little Simba plushy up, giving her the doubled dose of cute lion cub. Tyson all the while was completely sucked into the Cars-section while Percy was actually staring at the collectible figurines of the Disney-princesses with large eyes. At least until they just got taken out of the shelf. Percy turned to face his dad.

“Don't you dare trying to protest”, stated Poseidon with a smile. “I think I owe you a couple of birthday and Christmas presents. So, what else do you want, Percy?”

Percy bit his lower lip shyly and he was still quite reluctant as he picked out more things, but while Tyson was dragging Hades through the shop, he started feeling a little more confident. They were his parents and if they _wanted_ to spend money on him, it would be quite rude to object, right?

 

/break\

 

That night, Percy was happily clutching a snoring Tyson to his chest. All of their new treasures were laid out on the other bed, because Percy and Tyson obviously had to go through everything again. And since Tyson liked to sneak into Percy's bed anyway, this seemed a good solution. Sea-green eyes stared in total awe at all the Disney and Doctor Who merchandises he had gotten today, his cheeks glowing in excitement. They had taken him to London to take his mind off the trial – Percy was very much aware of Hades' intentions there – and then they had spend _so much money_ on him. It felt weird to Percy to have someone spending this kind of money on making him happy, but Nico and Poseidon had been quite stubborn about the matter. It was probably childish, he had gotten all those toys, both the ones at the Who Shop and the ones from the Disney-store, but Bianca had just clapped him on the shoulder and assured him it was alright. They knew he didn't have much as a child, he never had many toys. It was okay to catch up on his childhood, she had said.

And now he was looking forward to the rest of the vacation.

 

/break\

 

“I really can't decide which one is cuter. The squirrel or Leo”, mused Frank curiously.

“What a stupid thing to say. The combination, of course”, huffed Hazel with a glare.

They were in the Saint James Park, after having been at the Buckingham Palace. Tyson, Leo and Percy were having the time of their lives feeding squirrels and trying to pet them. The rest of their family was laying on a large blanket, relaxing and watching. Before that, they had already spend their morning checking out King's Cross to fulfill Hazel's and Bianca's nerdiness (albeit they were disappointed that there wasn't a way to go and take a photo between the platforms nine and ten) and the Baker Street to get Hades' and Nico's nerdiness satisfied (which had worked out fine for Triton too because there was a Beatles Store right next to it). Which had led to this afternoon of checking the palace, the park and from there on then over to the Big Ben.

So far, everyone had somehow found something to satisfy their needs and wants. For this evening, they also had booked a Jack the Ripper tour through London, for the sake of Nico, Thanatos, Bianca and Hades. Poseidon had offered to go on a boat-trip with Triton, Jason, Percy and Tyson all the while, since he knew the other half of their family was not as keen on boats. Frank, Hazel and Leo were happy to let them all go their way, because on the other side of the Themes was the London Eye and that was some romance the threesome didn't want to miss out on.

 

/break\

 

After their packed second day, they had decided to spend the third day at the hotel. Not all that willingly, because the weather had made those plans for them too. It was pouring. But between the pool, gym, spa, sauna and casino, they all found something to do. Nico and Jason were comfortably curled together on Percy's bed, watching how Frank, Leo, Percy and Tyson were playing with their toys on the floor. The parents were in the sauna, while Hazel and Bianca had a spa-day. Thanatos and Triton were in the casino. Everyone was somehow occupied.

“So, you like it?”, asked Nico with a grin, caressing Jason's hair.

“Uhu”, nodded Percy, smiling as he looked up at the two cuddled-up boys.

“And what did you like best so far?”, inquired Leo, who just led an attack of dwarves on Tyson's castle. “Nooo, we shall take our Snow White back behind the mountains!”

“I bet it was the Who Shop”, grinned Frank, flying a Maleficent-dragon toward the castle.

“You guys”, answered Percy, blushing a little. “I just... I never had a family like that. I always only had my mom. And I never really... had friends before. This vacation wouldn't have been fun without all of you. I... Thanks. For... well, it'll sound ridiculous, but... thanks for liking me.”

“Stupid big brother!”, chided Tyson and threw himself at Percy while still clutching his Ariel-figure. “We don't like you, we love you! Lots! And it would have been boring without you too!”

 

/break\

 

The fourth day was spend shopping – though more the clothes-kind. Albeit while doing that, they had some trouble getting Leo and Tyson out of the M&M store again. And Nico, Jason and Frank got to fulfill more of their nerdiness in the Forbidden Planet. Hades started to consider that they may have some trouble with the duty and import if the kids continued to buy so much.

From then on, the evenings had been planned by Hazel and Bianca, which meant a musical or show each evening. Most of the times, most of the boys fell asleep, but it was girls' choice and the boys had no input there. They had decided that the guys needed more culture.

The boys, in return, decided that the girls needed more exercise so there was an awful lot of walking. Which suited everyone just fine, since Percy insisted on them not constantly taking a limo and the others objecting to always taking public transportation. So walking it was.

 

/break\

 

Percy was snuggled up to Jason and Nico, with each of them on either of his sides, while Tyson was sitting comfortably on Percy's lap, getting his hair patted by his big brother. Frank, Hazel, Leo and Bianca were cramped together on Jason's bed. After yet another exciting day of roaming the city – today it had been the zoo and a couple of parks – the teenagers had decided to gather in Jason's and Nico's room for a bit of good, old television. Percy had his cheek resting against Nico's shoulder, with the Italian's arm around his waist and Jason half-spooning him, nose buried in Percy's neck. Which was why Percy had pulled Tyson up against his chest, because his mind started to go to quite different places here and he needed the little boy to ground him to the family-cuddles-feels that this was supposed to evoke. But only being stuck between Jason and Nico had send Percy's mind to naughty places. He was trying very hard not to feel that way, because Nico was supposed to be his brother and Nico and Jason were dating. Feeling that way would ruin what he now had. The family and friends that he had gained. He couldn't lose them again, not just over his own horniness.

“Big brother?”, asked Tyson and yawned. “I'm glad you found us...”

He was nestled closely against Percy's chest, his large hazel eyes turned half-lid onto Percy, looking at him adoringly. Yes, Percy could _never_ lose them again. He gripped the little boy a bit tighter.

“I'm glad I found you too, fratellino”, whispered Percy, kissing the top of Tyson's head.

“We all are”, stated Hazel, looking at them from the corner of her eyes.

“Totally! You're like my new best friend!”, exclaimed Leo and nodded wildly.

“Hey!”, protested Jason with a glare.

“No”, huffed Leo, leveling a teasing glare at the blonde. “After I had to explain to you who Georgia Moffett is, you are so out of the equation. Whovian-Percy it is. I'll be keeping him.”

“It's not my fault!”, muttered the blonde embarrassed. “I mean, I _still_ don't get it. So she's married to the Doctor whose daughter she is, even though she's the daughter of another Doctor... It doesn't make sense. Can't you watch something uncomplicated and easy? Like Game of Thrones?”

“Since when is Game of Thrones uncomplicated?”, grunted Frank and blinked a couple of times. “I can only remember like five names of the five-hundred characters and everybody whose name I can remember keep dying. Also, everyone is kinda related or something like that.”

“See”, grunted Jason. “Just shows how freaking complicated Doctor Who is!”

Percy smiled a little and snuggled more up to Nico. He really loved those guys.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, now that we're all caught up with what I have up on FFNet, you guys get to wait just as long for a single-chapter-update.  
> Next chapter will go back to Percy's new average days of properly befriending Blackjack, unbeknowingly teasing Jason and Nico, fanboying with Leo and the occasional cat-fight with Drew. Oh, and news about the trial~


	13. Percy's New Normal

Chapter 13: Percy's New Normal

Poseidon was sitting in the study, reading a book with one eye, the other eye watching Percy as the boy was pacing up and down, a book in one hand, the other hand waving around a little as he muttered to himself. Percy had joined him about half an hour ago and at first, he had wanted to leave again so he won't bother his dad. But Poseidon enjoyed his son's company.

"Not to bother you, but what exactly are you doing there, Percy?", asked Poseidon after a while.

"Huh? Oh, I'm trying to memorize my lines", sighed Percy, looking a bit frustrated.

"Lines?", repeated Poseidon stunned, putting his own book down.

"Yeah, in the week after the break, we decided in the drama club on what piece we'll perform at the end of the school year. We settled on an own interpretation of Sherlock Holmes", answered Percy shyly, flushing a bit. "And I kinda ended up being the Irene Adler to Annabeth's Holmes. Rachel is Watson and she's already really great. I'm just really nervous I'll mess it up..."

"I'm sure you'll do great", smiled Poseidon, patting his son's head.

"Thanks, dad", grinned Percy, blush darkening.

/break\

"You are the most beautiful, gorgeous guy I have ever met", whispered Percy tenderly.

Nico twitched a little. He couldn't believe he was actually being jealous of a _horse_. But the way Percy was caressing Blackjack's mane, praising him and cooing over him, how was Nico supposed _not_ to get jealous of the damn beast? Jason next to him laughed a little and kissed his cheek.

"Stop pouting, Nico", whispered the blonde amused.

"Percy", grunted Nico loudly. "Are you done flirting with Blackjack? Can we _go_ now?"

Percy laughed sheepishly and climbed onto the horse's back. "I'm sorry. I'm just still a little amazed at having a horse. I always wanted one. And he's so gorgeous and sweet."

Jason grinned a little. Percy was really easy to please, at least by their standards. Today, the three of them wanted to head out to the lake and swim some. Climbing onto Tempest's back together with Nico, the blonde took the lead. Percy was right next to him with Blackjack. The weather was perfect for a swim, but Nico and Jason wanted Percy to themselves, because Tyson kept hogging him all the time, or Hazel and Leo stole him away and Bianca took to using him as a dress-up doll.

"Last one in pays for the ice-cream", declared Percy as they climbed off the horses.

Nico and Jason only got to stare after Percy as the boy shed all his clothes aside from the swim-shorts he was wearing beneath. The gorgeous boy ran in and jumped head-first into the water.

/break\

"You look ratty as ever, _Ugliano_. Isn't that a fitting last name?"

Percy had been in a good mood until that very moment. He was sitting together with Rachel, Piper, Clarisse, Reyna, Silena, Charles, Luke, Chris, Jason and Nico. The laughter died in their conversation as they saw Drew approaching the table with a smirk on her lips. Chris held Clarisse back so his girlfriend wouldn't strangle Drew right away.

"What are you talking about?", asked Silena a little scandalized.

"Why, don't you know, little Percy there isn't a Jackson. He's an Ugliano", snickered Drew.

Percy averted his eyes shamefully. Silena frowned confused, looking between them.

"It's the last name of his old stepfather", whispered Rachel in explanation.

Nico gritted his teeth, ready to jump the stupid cheerleader for reminding Percy of this. They were doing their best to keep Percy from thinking about his horrible past.

"I'm a Jackson now and that's what matters", muttered Percy before he straightened.

"Atta, boy", grunted Clarisse, clapping him on the back.

"Besides, I'm far prettier than you anyway, Drewsie", smiled Percy brilliantly and stood.

Drew gaped at his casual reply as he just left the cafeteria. "Y—You! You're _not_!"

"That was lame", whispered Rachel with a snicker.

/break\

"Papà?", asked Percy softly as he sneaked into Hades' study that night.

"Mh? Yes, Percy?", inquired the lawyer confused as he turned some.

"I... Today at school, a girl called me Ugliano. How does she even _know_?", asked Percy.

He looked upset as he sat down next to Hades, turning his large, sad baby-seal eyes on the Italian. Hades frowned concerned and leaned back to look at the boy. He motioned for Percy to come closer to him and Percy obeyed, sitting down next to Hades.

"Nico already told me about that", admitted Hades. "Drew Tanaka is staying with her foster father Hermes Castellan, he has the same social worker as we do. Perhaps she's been snooping around. At any rate, I talked to Hermes about it and made sure she's grounded for the next two weeks. Percy, you're not defined by your last name. This man holds no power over you and he never will."

"What makes you so sure about it?", whispered Percy, looking even sadder now. "What if-"

"I actually only wanted to tell you once the sentencing is through", sighed Hades and shook his head. "But he has been found guilty. It wasn't much of a surprise, with the evidence of your and your mother's medical files, the testimonies from your old teachers, Doctor Solace, your dad, me and Mister and Missus Walker were enough to convince the judge."

"Iris and Hypnos from the farm next door to my grandparents?", asked Percy surprised.

"We talked on your mother's funeral", nodded Hades seriously. "They said your behavior and your mother's behavior changed drastically after she married this man. When the case seemed tight, I drove over and asked them if they'd testify on your behalf."

"That's... very nice", nodded Percy embarrassed, blushing a little. "So... he's going away?"

"He is going away", confirmed Hades, his voice firm and steady. "And you'll stay with us. You're a Jackson, you're never going to be an Ugliano again and as long as me and your dad are around, he won't come close to you again, Percy. We'll protect you."

Percy was stunned, staring doe-eyed at Hades. He knew that Hades and Poseidon had tried to shield him from the trial as best as possible, but that he had missed it completely. He was a bit surprised. All this time, he had somehow feared he'd be dragged into the middle of this fight, being poked by lawyers, having to talk in public about all those horrible things that had happened to him.

"Thank you", mumbled Percy, voice muffled as he buried his face in Hades' chest.

"You're welcome, bambino", smiled Hades amused, arms around the teen. "You're part of our family now and we watch out for each other, you hear? We're family."

"Family", repeated Percy, barely a whisper as he tasted the word.

/break\

"Family...", whispered Percy, frowning as he stared out of the window the next day.

"What are you muttering to yourself there, kiddo?"

Percy jumped a little and turned to look at Thanatos. The older one stood there with a grin on his face, eyes following Percy's line of sight. Triton and Nico were out in the backyard, training combat, with Herakles and Jason sitting at the sidelines, watching their respective boyfriends.

"Nothing", replied Percy embarrassed and continued watching Nico.

Thanatos grunted and sat down next to Percy silently. It was strange for Percy, he was torn between watching Nico, who was so highly concentrated as he tried to defend himself against Triton, or Jason, who looked ridiculously pleased as he cheered his boyfriend on.

"How do you do it, Thanatos?", asked Percy, his voice soft.

"Mh? How do I do what?", wanted Thanatos to know, a little confused.

"How do you live here every day while being in love with your brother?", clarified Percy.

Thanatos stiffened at that and turned to glare at Percy. "No idea what you're talking about."

"Okay", whispered Percy softly. "I just... I _really_ love this family a lot..."

Percy locked eyes with Thanatos for only a moment and Thanatos saw something startling in them. Percy wasn't taunting him, wasn't asking to rub it in that he knew Thanatos' best kept secret. The younger boy looked confused and hurt and honestly at a loss as his eyes wandered back to the yard. Blinking slowly, Thanatos realized something as he saw the expression in Percy's eyes. Thanatos was reluctant as he opened his mouth. Never before had he spoken to _anyone_ about this.

"That... depends on how deep your feelings are", whispered Thanatos, voice dark and serious. "If it's just a crush, you may get over it with time. But if it's more than that... Well, true love doesn't just go away in two weeks because you wish hard enough."

"So... if... it doesn't go away, how do I _do_ it?", asked Percy, eyes shimmering with unshed tears as he stared at Thanatos pleadingly. "I want to stay in this family. I don't... I don't want dad and papà to send me away again because I'm a little freak who's lusting after his brother!"

Despite the situation, Thanatos had to smile a little as he laid one hand over Percys head, ruffling his hair softly. "I guess you have to be sneaky. You have to control yourself. I'm not saying that's easy, because it's not. But, well, it helps a little that Tri has a boyfriend, it makes keeping my feelings to myself easier. Nico has a boyfriend too."

"Y—Yeah, that's... kinda part of the problem...", mumbled Percy, blushing as he stared at Jason.

"...Really now?", grunted Thanatos stunned, blinking a couple of times. "Well, that is awkward."

"Thanks", muttered Percy and glared at the older one fiercely.

Thanatos just laughed and ruffled Percy's hair again. "I've been living with this for years and I can tell you, it's not getting easier, but you'll live. Believe me. And... if it's getting too hard, I'll lend you an ear for all the bitching and whining you have bottled up. Deal?"

"Deal", grinned Percy, leaning into the hand ruffling his head. "Thanks, big brother."

"Oh, come here, you ridiculously adorable thing", grunted Thanatos annoyed and pulled Percy into a brief hug. "And believe me one thing, our fathers love you. They won't send you away again."

Percy remained silent, not arguing that one, because he didn't want to ruin the calm moment.

/break\

"Where are we going, Nico?", complained Jason, half-way irritated.

"The attic. Percy hides there when he wants to be alone", whispered Nico with a grin.

"But if that's where Percy goes to be alone, shouldn't we leave him alone?", asked Jason concerned.

"He's been kinda down the whole week, ever since Drew ran her annoying mouth", growled Nico with a glare. "I just thought we should cheer him up some, you know?"

"You're right", agreed Jason, frowning worried.

Seeing as Poseidon and Hades were on a date today, Triton and Thanatos had late classes, Bianca was out with friends and Hazel had taken Tyson over to the Dares so the little one could meet with his best friend Ella, it was only the three of them. Jason, Nico and Percy. Not that Nico knew that Nico and Jason were there because originally, the plan had been for them to go on a date too.

The attic had never been used for anything but storage, but soon enough, Percy had taken to sneaking up there. A bit to snoop around, because the old family photo books were stored there, as well as many old clothes and toys from the di Angelos and Jacksons. It had soon become his refugee whenever family just became too much, seeing as the latter hung high enough so Tyson couldn't reach it and not even the little one couldn't bother Percy.

Climbing up the latter, they walked along the tight, small hall toward the cell where Percy liked to stay the most – there was the old couch from the living room in it, making it more comfortable than the others where only cardboard boxes were stored. Reaching the cell, Nico and Jason paused. A soft moan came from the cell. Electric-blue eyes and dark brown ones locked surprised. Jason grinned brightly and pressed one finger to Nico's lips. He knew this trick. He was hiding his porn-stash in the attic too because Hera _never_ went up to the dusty attic while she _loved_ to snoop around in his room whenever he was at school. Like she was expecting to find drugs or something. He knew that Nico was a bit of a voyeur – screw that, he was a big perv who always enjoyed watching Jason, especially when he prepared himself before they had sex. The shark-like grin on Nico's lips told the blonde that Nico was more than eager to sneak a peek too. They had both developed deep-running feelings for Percy and watching him swim or train had been giving them quite literally a hard time before. It was maybe a bit masochistic to look and not touch now, but at least they'd have a clearer picture then. They were cheek to cheek as they tried to sneak a glance at Percy.

Percy was sprawled out on the couch, jeans around his ankles, legs spread. Jason's cheeks nearly exploded with heat as he noticed the vibrator clutched by Percy. Percy was flushed and panting as he thrust the toy into himself, his other hand wrapped around his hard cock. That picture would be haunting him for weeks to go. It would be far easier not to fall in love with Percy if he wouldn't be so damn enchanting. Cute, compassionate, sweet _and_ hot.

Nico wasn't coping any better. They were spending practically all their time together, after all. With the tutoring, with their by now shared circle of friends, living together, being on the swim-team. Percy was basically everywhere. And the more time Nico spend with him, the more he fell in love.

"We should go before he catches us", whispered Jason, tugging on Nico's hand.

The blonde was right. They'd look like total perverts if he'd see them now and he would never forgive them. They'd ruin everything. Nodding grumpily, Nico followed Jason.

They left Percy to finish on his own, not catching the softly whimpered _Ja—ay, Nico!_ that escaped Percy's lips as he came. He took a moment to just lay sprawled there, panting and enjoying the sensation of a completed orgasm. He really had needed that, the relaxing feeling of having come. There was just too much happening at once. What with the news of the trial's end, with staying here, all this attention all the time and then there was Drew, trying to be a bully. And Nico's and Jason's overall protectiveness, kindness and sexiness were not helpful at all either.

Licking his fingers, he slowly sat up. Pulling his jeans up again, he started to make his way downstairs again. This had been nice, some time to himself had been exactly what he needed.

"Hey, Perce! You want to watch a movie with us?", called Jason out as Percy entered his room.

The boy nearly jumped out of his skin. His face was beet-red as he turned around in slow-motion, the vibrator still in his hand. Jason and Nico were looking out of Nico's room, grinning at him.

"Oh, you want to introduce your boyfriend to us?", asked Nico teasingly.

"S—Shut up!", hissed Percy embarrassed, hiding the vibrator behind his back.

"Hey, he's just teasing", assured Jason softly. "Everyone needs a little me-time. There's nothing to be embarrassed about. So, you gonna join us for a movie?"

"I'll just... hit the shower first", mumbled Percy, still rather embarrassed.

"That's a sizable toy though", called Nico after him. "Sure you wanna _sit_ through a movie?"

Percy froze for a second and Jason feared that his stupid boyfriend had gone too far and pushed Percy away. Glaring at the Italian, Jason rammed his elbow into Nico's side. But Percy just turned to face them, grinning brightly as he tilted his head.

"Well, if Jason can sit through the movie after your morning activities, why shouldn't I? Or are you saying my toy is bigger than _you_ are, Nico?", chimed Percy cheekily.

A blush exploded in Jason's face and Nico gaped at the insult, jumping a little. "I'm _far_ bigger!"

Percy just giggled and ran off to take a shower.

/break\

"It's awfully silent", commented Clarisse during lunch break.

Due to another nerd-meeting on Jason's and Nico's account, Percy was spending his lunch break with Bianca and her classmates. Which was okay, because Percy really liked Clarisse and Silena in particular. And Octavian and Luke were pretty cool too. The blonde jock leaned back, arms behind his head as he looked around a bit. His boyfriend Octavian next to him grinned a little.

"It's because Drew hasn't opened her big mouth to insult anyone today", replied Octavian.

"Huh. That must be a first", frowned Katie surprised, before turning to Percy. "You see, you're not the first one she picks on. She's always loved insulting everyone."

"Huh. How odd", hummed Percy innocently, tilting his head.

"Uhm, I think something is up", stated Thalia, straightening her back.

She was pointing at the doorway of the cafeteria where vice-principal Lupa Brunner, a fuming Drew and two Stolls were entering. The Stolls were being pulled along by a glaring Lupa. Bianca frowned confused as they approached them. Drew was humping and pointing at Percy accusingly.

"Mister Jackson", stated Lupa calmly, though it was a deadly calm.

"Yes, Missus Brunner?", asked Percy innocently, blinking up at Lupa.

"It appears that _someone_ put superglue into Miss Tanaka's lip-gloss", said Lupa seriously.

"That is _a horrible thing to do_ ", gasped Percy scandalized, shaking his head.

"So you wouldn't know anything about it?", inquired Lupa, cocking one eyebrow.

"However should I know about that?", asked Percy, the picture of innocence. "I'm very busy learning my lines for the school play, you see. So I didn't see anything. But I sincerely hope that you catch whoever did this. Drewsie is such a sweet girl, that anyone would do that to her..."

"Now he's taking it a bit too far", snickered Luke as he whispered into Thalia's ear.

"Are you sure about that, Mister Jackson?", asked Lupa. "Because Miss Tanaka seems convinced that the Stolls broke her lock and that _you_ put superglue into her lip-gloss."

"As the son of a lawyer, I do have to ask: Is there any evidence that makes you believe so?", inquired Percy seriously, arms crossed over his chest. "Did anyone _see_ Travis, Connor or me at Drew's locker? Did either of us threaten to do such a thing? Was there anything left at her locker that indicated that me or my friends did this? Or are you just following the gut-instinct of a jealous brat? Because, as my friends surely will confirm, Drew had been jealous of me since I enrolled."

Everyone was stunned into silence for a moment, including Lupa. It was Silena, who regained her voice first, nodding firmly and confirming what Percy had just said. And that the captain of the cheerleading team rather defended him than one of her own, it did make Lupa skeptical.

"Very well", nodded Lupa, letting go of Travis and Connor. "I'll accompany Miss Tanaka to the school nurse. You're off the hook for now, but I'd advise you to be cautious."

"Yes, ma'am!", stated Travis and Connor with a mock-salute.

Lupa glared a little and Drew was trying to kill Percy with her eyes. Percy grinned brightly and stuck his tongue out at her just as they left again. But by the time she had alarmed Lupa and Lupe turned, Percy was once again the picture of innocence. Once the vice-principal left, Percy grinned and lifted both his hands, receiving high-fives on both sides from the Stolls.

"You're the devil, dressed as an angel", snorted Clarisse, ruffling Percy's hair. "Feisty, little panda-baby. Remind me not to get on your bad side."

Percy laughed and blushed. "Well, I just think that Drew should stop running her big mouth."

"You're a great addition for our school", smirked Luke, winking at the green-eyed boy.

"Stop flirting with him", chided Octavian with a glare.

/break\

Percy was learning his lines with Rachel's help, both going through a scene between Adler and Watson (really just a cock-fight for Sherlock's attention). They had the best audience possible, because their younger siblings were laying on the ground, staring at them with sparkling eyes.

"My brother is the best", whispered Tyson in awe.

"No true. Ella's Rachel is betterer", countered Ella.

"I think they could both need some improving."

The third voice was Annabeth's, seeing as she wanted to personally oversee everything. She was the main act and she had written the script and if possible, she would have wanted to also become the director of the play. So when Percy and Rachel had said they wanted to go through a scene together, she had decided to tag along and see how far they had improved. Needless to say that only seconds after that comment, she was being chased out of the room by Tyson and Ella, who ran after her like little devils. No one was allowed to criticize their beloved big siblings.

"Uhm... What in the world is going on...?", asked Nico stunned as he rounded the corner.

"Oh, Annabeth thinks Percy and I need more improving", smiled Rachel brightly. "Ty and Ella disagree with her on that point. I don't think she's allowed to come back here any time soon."

"Well, Jay and I made sandwiches and we thought you want to take a break and eat with us", offered the Italian with one of his charming smiles. "You're been working so hard."

"Everyone is working so hard for this play", countered Percy as he stood. "Annabeth, Malcolm and Octavian wrote the script, Silena, Lacy and Mitchell have been slaving away with the costumes, Leo, Charles, Jake and Nyssa are making such amazing props for the stage. So we can't slack."

"That's the spirit", grinned Rachel, patting him on the back.

Ten minutes later and Rachel, Nico, Percy and Jason were sitting together in the living room, eating sandwiches and watching BBC's _Sherlock_ – out of research reasons, of course. Solemnly that and not so Percy and Rachel could swoon over Benedict, no. The two giggled a little.

"Oh, I should get going. Dad's expecting us home for dinner", stated Rachel after a while as she caught sight of the clock. "I'll just go and hunt Ella down. See you tomorrow, guys."

Percy grinned and waved at his redheaded friend. He really enjoyed having such good friends. Yawning a little, he adjusted himself. School had been exhausting, then training with the swim-team _and_ the fencing club (Clarisse was heartless when it came to training), two hours of going over the script with Rachel and now that they had relaxed for an hour together, he felt himself slowly drifting off to sleep, enjoying the warm and safe feeling of Jason and Nico and the lulling sound of _Sherlock_ in the background. He hummed contently as Jason started to run his fingers through his hair, Percy's head having come to rest on Nico's thigh somewhere along the way.

"How are you feeling, Perce?", asked Jason softly, his head on Nico's other thigh so he could whisper into Percy's ear. "We heard about what you did to Drew today. Sweet payback for her stupid comment last week, but you need to watch out. If Missus Brunner catches you, you're in trouble. Are you okay? With her remark and the trial and all, I mean..."

"You're adorable when you worry", grinned Percy amused and yawned. "I'm fine, really. I've been putting up with bullies all my life and Drew's not exactly clever or anything. And Gabe... he's gone. Papà promised me and I trust him. I'm tough, you know?"

He grinned playfully, but Nico looked dead-serious as he answered. "Yes, we do, Perce."

"You're easily the toughest person I know", grinned Jason, making Percy blush.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will have Leo's Sweet Sixteen! So, a lot of Leo-cuteness with Frazel and budding friendship with Percy! Also, drunk!Percy may have more courage than sober!Percy, so let's see what Jason and Nico get out of that party! ;)


	14. Leo's Sweet Sixteen

Chapter 14: Leo's Sweet Sixteen

The Sweet Sixteen was apparently more than just a birthday party in this suburb. It was more like a rite and being invited to one was close to a status-symbol. It freaked Percy out. Still, he agreed to Leo's invitation (mostly because the Latino had the most irresistible puppy-dog eyes possible and it would also be rather ungrateful considering how happy Percy was to have such good friends finally). So he found himself at the Valdez-house down the streets that Saturday night.

Many from Percy's and Leo's class were there – Malcolm, Grover, Juniper, Rachel, Piper, Frank, Le's twin-sister Nyssa, Connor and Chris. Partners apparently came as an obvious plus one, so Malcolm's girlfriend Katie and Chris' girlfriend Clarisse were there too. Seeing as it was Leo's birthday, all four of Leo's siblings were there. Leo's two older brothers from Hephaestus' first marriage – Charles and Jake – as well as the youngest brother – Shane. All three of those had their respective partners with them too; Charles' girlfriend Silena, Jake's boyfriend Will and Shane's girlfriend Lacy. The only ones not from their class (or being partners of their classmates) were Jason, Nico, Annabeth, Reyna and Hazel. Then again, Hazel was the girlfriend of Frank and Leo.

To make it short, the living room was packed and it was loud. Couples were either cramped up on the couches, making out, or dancing in the connected dining hall that had been turned into their temporary dance-floor. Percy giggled as he saw Grover and Juniper, as well as Malcolm and Katie, trying to teach Jason and Nico how to waltz. While Macklemore was playing. It looked hilarious, especially since Jason and Nico kept stepping onto each other's feet. They were so cute.

"You look like you're not having enough fun", stated Connor seriously.

"No. It's fine. It's just... I... never had a birthday party myself and I never really had... friends who invited me to theirs", answered Percy awkwardly, shrugging a little. "This is all... new."

"Oh my gosh, I am throwing you _the_ most amazing party ever this year!", exclaimed Silena.

Her voice was high-pitched and scandalized as she turned to stare at Percy. The next second, she was hugging him tightly. He had been sitting on the couch with the two oldest couples around – Charles, Silena, Clarisse and Chris. All four were staring at him with a mixture of pity and determination. Percy was pretty sure that Silena would push everyone into helping to make this the most special birthday party all of Myosotis Lane had ever seen. It made Percy blush.

"Come on, eat some, drink some, loosen up", ordered Connor, patting his back.

The brunette dragged Percy over to the buffet and only in front of the various burgers, hotdogs and pizzas did he notice just how hungry he was. For the last hour, Percy had just been sitting around silently, observing the others. Connor started some rather random conversation about their school's last football game, just to get Percy to talk and not just silently observe. They ate together and drank the incredibly delicious various juices around. Percy knew those rich kids had more fancy juices than the apple juice and orange juice Percy grew up with, but those things tasted amazing.

"Those three have the most fun", observed Percy after his fifth glass of fancy juice.

Nyssa, Rachel and Piper were dancing on the table while singing karaoke. Connor snickered and patted Percy's back, slowly pushing him toward them. Frowning thoughtful, Percy took another glass of fancy juice – there were strawberry banana, blueberries even and Percy had no idea you could make juice out of blueberries. Emptying it in nearly one go, Percy joined the girls.

"Would you mind teaching Percy how to sing?", asked Connor amused, offering Percy to them.

"Yes!", exclaimed the three girls, looking greedy like the sirens at a sailor.

/break\

Jason and Nico had given up on learning how to waltz one Justin Bieber and two Taylor Swift songs ago. They were also opting to hijack the stereo equipment and feed it something good for a change. Giving their aching feet a rest, they were sitting together with Frank, Hazel, Reyna and Annabeth. While the two girls were rather busy making out, the other two were fondly watching their lover. The birthday-boy had joined Rachel, Piper, Nyssa and Percy about ten minutes ago. Granted, those five singing One Direction was horrifying and could be called 'torture', but they looked so carefree and happy as they yelled out the lyrics. Jason and Nico were watching just as fondly.

"The two of them are really getting along well", whispered Hazel softly.

"I'm glad Percy found good friends outside our family", agreed Nico, smiling to himself.

His smile shrank some when between songs, Percy stumbled down the table and toward the buffet. In an instance, Nico, Jason, Hazel and Frank all got up to walk toward the son of Poseidon. Connor, who was sitting on top of their little bar, laughed amused as Percy reached him. The green-eyed boy reached for another glass, but even before the concerned four could say something, Connor batted Percy's hand away. Percy glared irritated just as Leo came up behind him, wrapping both arms around Percy's waist and trying to drag the other back to the table.

"Dude! You gotta duet with me! I wanna sing _Time Warp_ with you", whined Leo. "Please?"

"Yeah, that sounds fun", smiled Percy brightly. "Just wait a minute. I'm thirsty."

"Here. Have some water", suggested Hazel concerned, handing Percy a bottle.

"No! I wanna have more fancy juice", disagreed Percy upset.

"Percy, you've had enough", said Jason softly, trying to push Percy away from the bar.

"How can I have enough of the juice? I only ever had orange or apple but you got all those freaky fruits that I've never seen before like dragon fruits! I didn't even know dragons grew on trees..."

"Percy, you're drunk man. You need to learn your limits", laughed Connor amused.

"W—What...?", asked Percy bewildered, looking from one of his friends to the other.

"You... know that the 'fancy juices' are cocktails, right?", asked Hazel slowly.

"You mean like... with...", started Percy very slowly, face screwed up.

"Alcohol. Perce, come on", laughed Leo, nudging his newest bro. "It's an old tradition around here. The kids of Hermes provide the alcohol to mix us awesome cocktails on the sweet sixteens."

"Luke started that tradition", chuckled Frank with a short nod.

"You mean... there's alcohol in those...?", asked Percy stunned, staring at the juices.

"Yeah, duh", giggled Leo. "I mean, didn't you know? Or like, notice?"

"H—How should I have _known_?", ground Percy out, looking upset. "It's your sixteenth birthday, not your twenty-first, so alcohol kinda has no business here!"

"Well, that's part of the fun", shrugged Connor. "Sneaking the stuff out of dad's locked bar and doing the forbidden, you know? Don't tell me you never stole a beer out of the fridge."

"No, I did not", growled Percy, balling a fist. "And there is _nothing_ fun about alcohol."

The party fell eerily silent when Percy's fist connected with Connor's jaw, knocking him off the table. Everyone was staring at them in stunned silence, watching how Percy stared mortified at his own first before he stomped – or rather stumbled – out of the house. Leo frowned upset. Chris all the while took care of his hurt foster brother, checking if Connor's nose was broken or not, while his girlfriend Clarisse went to get some frozen peas from the kitchen.

"What just... happened...?", asked Leo, looking up at his girlfriend.

Hazel wrapped her arms around his waist, frowning equally confused. "I have no idea, babe."

"Fuck...", whispered Nico as realization dawned on him. "We are so fucking dumb."

"Yeah, I'm getting that impression too. But... why?", asked Frank at a loss.

"Because Percy had been abused for years by his _alcoholic_ stepfather", hissed Nico, causing the crowd that by now had gathered around them to gasp. "I doubt he ever drank alcohol before."

"Kinda... figures...", whispered Jason, guilty frown in place. "I mean, if the _only_ effect I ever saw alcohol having on someone be constant beatings..."

Leo gave a pitiful whine and ran out of the living room. Most looked different shades of guilty. It had been normal for them to occasionally sneak a beer out of the fridge and drink them together at a hot summer night, or getting the harder stuff to make themselves some cocktails on birthdays. Partying. Because that was how they saw alcohol – a fun addition to a good time. But Percy, never having been very social and thus probably never been to a party with drinking, only ever having seen alcohol in the combination of his drunk stepfather beating the crap out of him and his mother.

"So, I think that party just died", observed Grover awkwardly.

"Poor thing... I feel like we should go after him...", whispered Juniper, leaning against Grover.

"No!", exclaimed Chris a little hastily, earning him stunned looks. "I mean, I've met a lot of foster kids at Hermes' place already and many have been abused at a point. I think he'll feel cornered if we all hunt him down. It'll be too overwhelming for him."

"Jay and I will go after him and make sure he's alright", stated Nico firmly. "You guys, make Leo happy, because this _is_ his birthday and he should have fun instead of feeling guilty."

"Don't worry, me and the girls will take care of that", smiled Hazel.

"Okay, up for that", shrugged Nyssa, looking over at Rachel, who nodded in agreement.

"Oh, sweeties, not you girls", smirked Hazel, pushing her boobs up in her shirt.

"Ew. No, Haze", groaned Nico, wiggling his nose. "TMI. Come on, Jay."

/break\

Since it was Saturday night and Hazel, Percy, Nico and Jason were supposed to be on Leo's Sweet Sixteen, Triton and Thanatos were at a party with their friends Persephone, Circe and Herakles, Ty was at a sleep-over at the Dares and Bianca had tagged along on a camping/hiking/hunting trip with Artemis Nightshade and her girls, Hades had decided to take his beloved boyfriend out on a fancy date. Which left the di Angelo estate empty, dark and silent when Percy came storming in.

Nico and Jason felt bad that it took them an hour before they actually _found_ Percy. First place they had checked had been the tree-house at the Zhang la Rue estate, then the stables, the attic next and only when they had climbed down the latter with annoyed and concerned looks on their faces had they heard the sobbing coming from Percy's room.

"Perce?", whispered Nico softly as he knocked and entered right away.

"N—No...", countered Percy weakly. "Go back to your fun party."

"It's not so much fun without you", murmured Jason tenderly.

The couple entered the room and walked over to Percy. The green-eyed boy was sitting in the middle of his bed, arms wound around his legs, head resting on his knees and looking overall just plain miserable. So Jason and Nico sat down on either side of Percy, very closely so.

"Talk to us", prompted Nico, slowly laying one arm around Percy's waist. "Why are you crying?"

There was a stretch of silence as Percy tried to catch his breath. "Gabe always got drunk. And it was _never_ fun. He was his most aggressive when he was drinking... When he was feeling especially vicious, h—he liked to throw the empty bottles after me... I don't know how much time I spend picking glass-shards out of my skin..."

"I'm sorry, Percy", whispered Jason, laying his arm around Percy from the other side. "We didn't mean to remind you of... well, that. You're here now. You're safe now."

"It's not... not about the memories. No day passes without something reminding me of it", muttered Percy, curling together in himself a little tighter. "Sometimes, when I see a dark leather belt, I'd remember... h—him, or the smell of cigars when Hades has a colleague over, the smell of fresh cookies that reminds me of my mom which in return reminds me of the man who tormented her... I—I know how to get out of the flashbacks again by now."

"Then... what is it?", asked Jason confused, hugging Percy closer.

"He hadn't been bad at first", started Percy slowly. "Back when my mom started dating him, he could be... nearly charming. Then his temper got shorter. He drank more. He started beating me when he drank. He drank more. I swore to myself I'd never drink alcohol in my life."

"Oh", whispered Nico concerned. "I'm... sorry we accidentally took that choice away from you. We didn't... think about it. It's been a tradition around here and I guess no one thought about how... how you'd feel about drinking. It's just... normal for us, I guess. Drinking on parties."

"I never wanted to drink alcohol because I never wanted to become like him", continued Percy shallowly. "And now I just... I just _hit_ Connor... I—I... I'll become just like him..."

Jason gulped hard, fingers digging into Percy's side as he held onto the younger boy. "No. No, you are not. You just became angry. You hit him once and then you left. I guess in your situation, I'd have hit him too. I mean, it's apparently a big fear of yours to get drunk and due to Con you actually got drunk without knowing. You're allowed to be angry. You didn't pick a _fight_ , you placed one anger-inducted hit. You would _never_ become him, Perce."

"What makes you say that?", whispered Percy unsure, looking at Jason with large eyes.

"Me and Thals haven't _always_ lived here either", admitted Jason cautiously. "When we were little, we lived with our mother Beryl, until she drank herself to death at the steering wheel when I was about three. Thalia is two years older than me so she has more memories. She told me about our mother's drinking problem. But just because she had one didn't mean me and Thalia are meant to become alcoholics too. And just because you grew up with an alcoholic doesn't mean you will too."

"You're made up of genes and environment. Gabe may have been your environment, but he is only _part_ of it. The other part is your loving mother, how she took care of you, how _both_ of you didn't succumb to drinking or drugs out of despair after years of abuse. And your genes are good", added Nico tenderly. "And even so, genes and environment only make up part of you. _You_ are your own person and you decide how far you let those things define you."

"What if I'm too weak?", asked Percy timidly, shaking a bit.

"You're not weak, Percy", grunted Nico seriously. "You're the strongest person I know."

"You're strong, sweet and kind", added Jason softly, reaching out to caress Percy's cheek. "You're amazing and I know that you fought hard enough to get the life you have now. You wouldn't let something like alcohol take that away from you again, Perce."

"Y—You... really think that...?", asked Percy softly, cheeks flushing a tender pink.

"Yes", replied Jason firmly, blue eyes sparkling with adoration. "You're one of the most amazing people I ever got to meet, Perce. You lived through all of that and still kept your smile. If you didn't crumble when all you had was your mother, I _know_ you're not going to give in and give up now that you have the support of all of us, because we all love you."

"You do...?", asked Percy, biting his lower lip.

Jason found himself tongue-tied and captivated. Those kissable, plumb lips were caught between sharp, white teeth, worried to the point that the rosy pink turned an alluring red. Sea-green eyes were half-lid and hazed from the booze and from something else that Jason couldn't quite pinpoint right now. And then there was that delicious strawberry-red. All in all, Percy was _perfect_ right there.

"Yes", answered Nico instead, leaning in so his breath was tickling Percy's neck. "We love you. We will never stop believing in you. We believe in the good in you and that you'd _never_ do anything to ruin our lives together. We trust you, Perce. Jay and I will never give up on you."

"Y—Yeah?", whispered the young Jackson unsure, looking over his shoulder at Nico before turning back to Jason with those incredibly irresistible baby-seal eyes. "Really?"

"What he said", nodded Jason with a ridiculously dumb expression on his face. "Always."

Percy would later blame the new sensation of being drunk for his boldness, but no one had ever said something like that. That they believed in him, trusted him, loved him. In that moment, he was more high on the feeling of being cherished than he was on the booze. So he did the first thing he felt like doing – he leaned in and pressed his lips onto Jason's. At first, the blonde was too surprised to react, but soon enough Jason moved his lips against Percy's in a soft kiss. Nico couldn't believe how hot it looked. He too followed an intuition as he leaned down to drag his lips along Percy's collar.

"Or am I not invited to the party?", whispered Nico into Percy's ear as the younger boy froze.

When Jason and Percy parted, the green-eyed teen turned and grabbed for Nico's neck, pulling the son of Hades into a deep, slow kiss. Jason groaned as he watched them. How could anything be that hot? Nico's olive-skinned arms, tightly wrapped around Percy's waist in what was obvious possessiveness, while Percy was practically melting into the touch. They continued doing that for a good half hour, Percy kissing Nico, Nico kissing Jason, Jason kissing Percy. The slow and lazy kisses evolved into hungry and passionate ones. Hunger grew into need and clothes became a hindrance. A nuisance in the way of lust. Three pair of hands tugged vigorously on any piece of clothing they could grasp until the boys were bare. All three of them were panting hard by the time they were a tangle of naked limbs, with Percy stuck in the middle, held tightly by Jason and Nico.

"What do you want?", asked Nico, voice rough as he bit Percy's collarbone.

"You", panted Percy, head resting against Jason's chest to give Nico better access.

"What else?", inquired Jason, working on a hickey on Percy's shoulder.

Percy had his fingers buried in Jason's golden-blonde hair, head turned to look up at Jason with lust-filled eyes. "Your cock down my throat. And _your_ cock up my ass."

Nico perked up at that, cock twitching in anticipation. He had spend so much time staring at Percy's behind, the thought of being inside of it was more than appealing. Jason all the while was grinning broadly at the thought of having those plumb, soft-looking lips around his dick.

"Right. Yes. Wait", nodded Jason hastily and stumbled out of the room.

"While Jay gets the lube, you could... put your lips to use here", ordered Nico.

He was tracing Percy's kiss-swollen lips with two fingers and the green-eyed boy all too eagerly opened up to suck on them, tongue wrapping around them and slicking the digits up. For a moment, Nico found himself envious of Jason, because that tongue was very cunning. Pulling his fingers out of the greedy mouth, he slowly laid his arms around Percy's waist and parted the other boy's cheeks. Putting one finger from each hand in, he emitted a small gasp from Percy. He eased them in slowly, wiggling and spreading. By the time he added a second finger from each hand, Jason finally returned, holding up the lube like he had found the Holy Grail.

"Here!", exclaimed Jason eagerly, stumbling back onto the bed. "No, wait. Lemme."

Opening it, he poured a little heap onto his own hands and started to lube Nico's cock up, his grip firm on the hardness as he jerked up and down, smearing the lube all over his lover. Jason and Nico were kissing heatedly, Percy hanging somewhere between them.

"Okay, okay. Enough", groaned Percy, nails digging into Nico's biceps. "Jay, down. Nick, up."

"You're bossy in bed", noted Jason delighted as he laid down, legs spread. "I like it."

Percy hummed softly as he bend over, fingers digging into Jason's thighs. He stared curiously at the cock that was pointing straight into his face. When Nico grabbed him by the hips and thrust into him, Percy was pushed forward, finding himself with his nose against Jason's head. Opening up, he decided that his mouth was a better place for that cock. Jason groaned strangled as the wet heat of Percy's caverns enveloped his thick hardness. Nico made an agreeing noise as he eased inch by inch of his own cock into their shared lover's other hole. Sea-green eyes rolled back as Percy had both his lovers to the hilt inside of him. Deep-throating Jason, having Nico balls-deep inside his tight ass. After some awkward moments of adjustment, they found the perfect pace. Percy pulled off the same time as Nico pulled out and the drive of Nico's thrust pushed Jason's cock down Percy's throat.

"So good", groaned Nico, moving harder. "I—I won't last... much longer..."

Jason whined as Percy let go of his cock to look up at Nico. "Come inside me. Please."

"Your word is my command", chuckled the son of Hades, eyes sparkling with desire.

A hearty sigh escaped Jason's lips as Percy started to pay attention to him again. His fingers were curled into the mess Percy called hair. True to his words was Nico the first to come, the sensation of being filled by the Italian made Percy moan, this vibration in turn sending Jason over the edge. Only when both his lovers were filling him with their hot seed from both ends did Percy come. The sensation was just too intense, tasting Jason on his tongue, trying to swallow as much as possible while the warmth of Nico's cum filled his insides. An olive-skinned hand was urging Percy on, milking the orgasm out of the green-eyed boy. For a couple of moments, they remained joined like that, before Percy pulled away and rolled over. He came to lay on his bed spread-eagle and with a happy grin on his face and cum around his lips. Nico chuckled as he leaned over to kiss Percy and lick the remains of their blonde off those rosy lips. He then pulled Percy close so the green-eyed boy was laying curled against one of Nico's side. Jason eagerly took the other side. All three were content and sated as they were dwelling in post-orgasmic bliss.

/break\

"So, was the party really that bad?", asked Hazel softly, concerned.

"No, is fine...", mumbled Leo, his voice muffled.

"Of course he's saying that", snorted Reyna who was sitting beside them. "I think everyone would be fine if they got to bury their faces between those two cushy pillows."

The Latina had one eyebrow arches as she pointed with her finger from boob to boob to Leo. Leo had a shit-eating grin on his face where he was laying on Frank's lap, but with his face situated between Hazel's breasts. Hazel rolled her eyes and continued to run her fingers through Leo's curls.

"Oh? Is that the case?", inquired Annabeth with a slight edge to her voice.

"Uhm", grunted Reyna, swallowing hard. "Not that her breasts are in any way superior to yours. You know how much I love Mary-Kate and Ashley! I adore them!"

"Too bad you won't get to see the twins for the next few days then", stated Annabeth with a huff.

Reyna whined as her blonde sauntered away. Hazel laughed softly, settling more comfortable on the couch. The party had flared up again after Jason, Nico and Percy left, but by now all were drunk and sleeping in a guest room, on the floor or – in Grover's case – in front of the fridge, curled together around an enchilada. With Reyna, Frank, Hazel and Leo were Piper and Rachel.

"You think... Percy is fine?", whispered Piper concerned.

"He's probably better than Reyna right now", chuckled Rachel.

"I _love_ the twins", whined Reyna, pouting.

"Then you should know not to look at other girls' twins", stated Frank cautiously. "Especially not at my girl's twins. Really now, Rey. You know Annabeth is... sensitive about those things."

"To answer your question, Pipes", interrupted Hazel, her voice soft. "I think that Percy is fine. Nico and Jason care... a lot about him. They'll make sure he knows that we didn't mean any harm."

"How's Connor by the way?", inquired Reyna thoughtful, staring longingly after Annabeth.

"Oh, he's fine. He'll use the black eye to get some extra care and attention out of Travis and everybody's happy", chuckled Chris as he walked up to them. "But _we_ won't be fine if we don't start cleaning up before Missus V comes home. You know how she is about her baby boy."

"Right. Esperanza still thinks Leo is a virtuous virgin", nodded Hazel concerned. "Hide the bottles and... the condoms. Why are there even condoms in the kitchen...?"

"Two words", stated Frank with a half-grin. "Will and Jake."

"Technically, those were two names and one word", pointed Leo out.

"How about we let our good friends do the cleaning up while we put those to good use?", suggested Hazel in a seductive voice, holding two still wrapped condoms up. "One more present, firebug?"

Leo's eyes sparkled as he scrambled off his lovers, leaving their friends to clean their mess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will have the boys facing a hangover and the fact that they had sex. How will our threesome individually handle that situation...?


	15. The Boy Who Ruined Everything

Chapter 15: The Boy Who Ruined Everything

Nico groaned pleased as he rolled over. He felt positively exhausted, as he always did after a round of good sex. He was anticipating the morning actually. Cuddling not just with Jason, but also with Percy. Having Percy. Honestly, last night still felt like a dream to the Italian boy. Patting the bed on one side, he managed to pull Jason closer until the blonde was resting with his head on Nico's shoulder. Patting the bed on the other side, he felt a paper beneath his fingers. Frowning confused, he slowly cracked one eye open to see what he had found. On the left, a sleepy Jason and on the right, a note. No Percy. Sitting up some – which caused him an adorable whine from Jason – he began to read it. With every line, his eyes grew wider and his heart sank.

"Jay. Jason, wake up", ordered Nico, poking his blonde. "Wake up. Percy is gone."

"Don't be so clingy, Nick", groaned Jason annoyed. "He's probably taking a shower, or somethin'..."

"No, he left us a note. He's gone. For... good", whispered Nico.

Instantly, Jason was awake. Sitting up hastily, he grabbed the note out of Nico's hand and red it, a horrified expression on his face. He dropped it once he was done and stormed out of the room – not minding that he was butt-naked. Nico followed him, at least wrapping the sheets around himself. Together, they entered Percy's room. On first look, everything looked normal. Only when looked at closer did they notice. The two photos on his nightstand were missing – one being the only picture of himself and his mother that he still had and the other being of their family vacation in London, all of them smiling into the camera in front of the Big Ben. The closet was left open, most likely missing a few items. The spot on the bookshelf reserved to Percy's journal was empty. And Blue Bell the bear wasn't in his usual spot sitting on Percy's pillow.

"No. No, no, no... H—He can't be _gone_ ", whispered Jason hoarsely.

"Boys, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't cause such a ruckus that early in the morning. I'd also appreciate it if you'd put on some clothes", interrupted Hades seriously. "What's going on?"

"Percy left", admitted Nico reluctantly. "H—He's... gone."

"Don't be silly", chided Hades with a frown, sipping the cup of coffee he was holding.

"Blue Bell's gone. So are the pictures, his journal, I bet some of his clothes", replied Jason.

Hades' frown deepened as he entered the room and looked around. He noticed all the things as he looked closer and his eyes widened. Honestly, a few weeks ago and he would have easily bought it. But now? Why now? He thought Percy was happy here, settled. Gabe had been dealt with, Percy was here to stay. So why didn't he stay? The mug slipped out of his hand and broke on the floor.

"I want the family in the kitchen _now_ ", ordered Hades sharply.

/break\

Percy was shuddering a little as he curled himself together on his seat in the bus. He was clutching the backpack – Tyson's _My Little Pony_ backpack that had still been laying around in Percy's room after their last trip to the lake together, it had been the first thing Percy had found this morning.

This morning. He groaned a little at the memory, rubbing his face. Alcohol always destroyed everything. Even though it hadn't turned him into a violent monster, he had still managed to drive his own life against the wall. Not just had he slept with a happy couple, perhaps ruining their relationship and certainly ruining his own friendship with them, no, one of them was his supposedly brother. What if Hades learned about it? He'd be kicked out. And worse yet, right before getting kicked out, Percy would have to see the disgust on their faces. The disgust upon what Percy had done. Ruining this wonderful family that had accepted him with open arms.

He had always said he wouldn't stay forever. But he never thought leaving would hurt that much.

/break\

"What's going on?", yawned Poseidon as he carried a nearly-asleep Tyson into the kitchen.

"Yeah, what's with the drill?", groaned Hazel, collapsing face-first on the desk.

Everyone looked half-asleep still. All of them had been deep asleep when Hades, Jason and Nico had woken them and herded them all downstairs. Triton was half-asleep, cheek plastered against Thantos' biceps. Bianca frowned as she noted how unnerved Hades was and how guilty Jason and Nico looked. Even more important was the lack of Percy.

"It appears that... Percy ran away", stated Hades slowly, grinding his teeth.

"W—What does that mean?", asked Poseidon, slowly sitting down.

"His most precious belongings are missing and so is he", replied Hades, trying to sound soothing as he approached his lover. "We looked everywhere in the house and the surroundings. He's gone."

"No. No, he wouldn't go", denied Poseidon and shook his head. "No. He's happy. He's my son and he loved being here. H—He loves Ty and Blackjack and the pool and the school – he is looking forward to the school play, he wouldn't let the others hang! He-"

"He's gone", interrupted Nico, voice tight. "He took the picture of his mother and Blue Bell, some clothes and his journal. Only the necessities, the things he had when he first arrived here."

"But... why?", asked Triton confused and sat up some. "Dad's right. Why would he leave now?"

"Well, did anything happen during the party yesterday?", asked Thanatos curiously.

All eyes turned to Hazel, Nico and Jason. While Nico and Jason were curled together, sitting close, Hazel perked up, eyes widening in realization as she seemingly figured things out.

"Oh. Oh. Well, I, uhm", started Hazel unsure. "We had cocktails and he didn't know, he thought it was just juices and then he got drunk and we told him he should slow down and he got _really_ angry. Because of, well, the things his stepfather did when he was drunk. And then he left. But Jason and Nico went after him – what happened? I mean, I thought you took care of him...?"

"We did. We thought, uhm, we got through to him, but...", replied Jason and stumbled.

"Okay. Okay, what do we _do_?", asked Poseidon in a panicked voice.

"We call Frank, obviously! His parents are cops! They gotta know how to find Percy!", exclaimed Hazel and stood, half way to her room already to get her phone.

"Good. Good start", nodded Hades and looked over at his boyfriend. "Thanatos, Triton, could you maybe get Tyson cleaned up and dressed? I'd like to have a minute alone with Poseidon."

The oldest two nodded and Triton took Tyson off their father's arms. Bianca followed Hazel out and Jason and Nico too left the kitchen. Once all the kids were out, Hades crouched down beside Poseidon, cupping his lover's cheeks and forcing him to look at the lawyer. Tears were shining in Poseidon's eyes and now that the children weren't with them, Poseidon let them run. He collapsed forward into Hades' arms and cried into his lover's shoulder.

"Why would he leave? Why would he go? I—I thought he liked it here, I thought he... he liked us... me... I thought he forgave me and h—he... loved me... I thought we could be a family..."

"I know, amore", whispered Hades softly, pulling Poseidon as close as possible. "I know he wanted to stay, Poseidon. Something must have happened, but we'll find him and sort it out. I promise you, we'll find him and bring him back. He loves you, he felt safe here. He wouldn't have left without a reason. Maybe something happened after Jason and Nico talked to him, who knows. We'll find out. I promise you, my love, we will find him and everything will be alright again. I promise."

/break\

Thanatos staggered a little as he let Triton carry Tyson off. Something about Nico and Jason bothered him. They looked far too guilty and the way they had broken off the retaliation of last night seemed rather forced too. Once Triton entered Tyson's room with the youngest, Thanatos grabbed both other boys by the scurf of their necks and pulled them into the next best room.

"Ouch", grunted Nico with a glare. "What's that about?!"

"What happened yesterday _really_?", asked Thanatos sharply, cornering them.

"No idea what you mean", huffed Jason defensively, shifting a little.

"Oh no, don't give me that crap", growled Thanatos darkly, crossing his arms over his chest. "There is no way it was a coincident that the last time Percy was seen had been by you two, all alone and now he decided to run away. I want you to tell me the truth now."

"What are you accusing us of?!", exclaimed Nico angered and jumped up.

"I don't know. You tell me", demanded Thanatos, glaring. "He was drunk for the first time of his life, did the alcohol loosen his tongue? He was alone with the two of you, vulnerable. Did he confess his feelings to you and you told him off? Did you hurt his feelings, chase him away?"

"Wait. Wait, wait, wait, hold on!", interrupted Jason and held his hands up. "His _feelings_?"

"O...kay. So that wasn't it, damn", muttered Thanatos awkwardly.

"No. I mean, kind of? I don't know. We didn't talk much", sighed Nico and ran his fingers through his hair. "I mean, we did at first. And then we had sex. Really _good_ sex. And then we fell asleep."

"Sex? Like... all three of you?", asked Thanatos stunned, staring at them.

"Yeah", nodded Jason and looked at the carpet. "Look, we're not proud of it either. I mean, not that we regret having sex with him, but the way it happened. We were all drunk and like you said, he was vulnerable. Fuck, we took advantage of him a—and now he can't live with us anymore..."

"It even said so in the note", whispered Nico, getting the note out of his pocket.

Thanatos frowned and took it, reading it carefully. His eyes softened a little as he shook his head.

"No, I think you misunderstood", whispered Thanatos softly. "He loves you. You two. And all of us too maybe, but not in the same way. He... told me so himself, not too long ago. The way I see is that he feels the same way as you do right now. Guilty and like he abused your trust, like he ruined everything. But you two are settled here, this has always been your home. He's new here and he now feels like an intruder, so he did the thing that seemed most logical to him. Running."

"H—How do we... make him stop running?", asked Nico softly, looking pleadingly up at Thanatos.

"You really care for him, for more than just... sex", whispered Thanatos a little surprised.

"I think we kinda love him", admitted Jason awkwardly, rubbing his neck.

"Okay", nodded Thanatos slowly. "So, there's a way to fix this then."

"T—There is?", asked Nico hopefully. "Tell us. How?"

"First, you need to come clear to our parents", stated Thanatos and grit his teeth. "I know you may not like it, I know it may even frighten you, but there is _no way_ Percy would come back here to secret feelings and the fear of our fathers kicking him out again for the way he feels."

"B—But... what will they think of us...?", asked Nico with a frown, looking guilty.

"Honestly, I don't care", said Thanatos firmly. "This is only about Percy right now. He needs to know that this is still a safe place for him, that he is still welcome here. Finding him will be of no use if he just runs again because he doesn't feel like he belongs here."

Jason and Nico exchanged a concerned, guilty and upset look.

/break\

Percy smiled a little strained as he looked out the window. He could see Castor and Pollux approaching. Their father owned a diner/bar and by the looks of it, they had some of Dionysus' goods with them. They were accompanied by Mike, Sherman and Mark. He knew word would travel fast around here, it wasn't every day someone would come and visit and his face was still rather well-known. The five boys entered the barn and made their way up the latter.

"Linwood. Whatever brings you back to our humble little town?", asked Mike with a smile.

The Hawaiian boy had always been charming and friendly. He grabbed one of the blankets and spread it out on the hay. Percy moved from his spot at the window, overlooking the town.

"Hey, guys", greeted Percy softly, straightening the black hoodie he was wearing. "Nothing."

"Like fuck it's nothing", snorted Mark as Percy was pulled into a hug.

Everyone hugged Percy briefly and then they sat out a picnic in the hay. Percy buried himself deeper in the hoodie that still smelt like Nico. When he had gotten dressed this morning, he had been in such a haste, he had grabbed Jason's shirt and Nico's hoodie.

"Why are you here? And why do you look like shit?", inquired Sherman.

"Haven't slept much. Also, first hangover of my life and it is a disgusting feeling", groaned Percy and got more comfortable, shivering a little. "Been on my feet since before sunrise."

"Why?", asked Mike concerned, sitting closer to Percy to rub the younger boy's arms and warm him up some. "You're freezing, Perce. What happened to you? And is that... a backpack?"

"I'm gonna crash here for, I don't know, maybe forever", shrugged Percy, turning to look into the distance. "I screwed up. Badly. Can't go back to my cushy, fancy suburban life."

"Uhm, okay, what happened?", asked Castor with a frown.

"I slept with my brother – uhm, none of my blood-brothers. Nico. The son of the man my father lives with. As in, the man who generously took me in, who locked up my stepfather, who paid for my mother's funeral. And I ruined everything", replied Percy shallowly.

"Uhm, you could work at the diner?", offered Pollux and made a face.

"Not helping, Polly", chided Mark with a glare.

"How about that, for now, we just eat?", suggested Mike softly.

/break\

At the same point of time, the living room of the di Angelo manor had been turned into the headquarters of the search-team for Percy Jackson. Seemingly everyone was gathered. Aphrodite, Demeter and Hestia were preparing lunch, chatting softly. Esperanza and Hephaestus were arguing about the plans of action with Ares and Emily. Apollo had his kids gathered around him, arguing with his twin-sister Artemis, who had her own girls gathered around. They had formed search-teams, but they couldn't agree on who got which route.

"Papá, dad, can I... talk to you for a moment?", asked Nico awkwardly.

He and Jason had been avoiding it for hours now, but Thanatos kept glaring at them (whenever he wasn't busy with his own team of Triton, Herakles, Persephone and Circe). Hades grunted a little annoyed. He was currently rather busy trying not rip Zeus' head off seeing as the other man was already picturing this as a failure in the making. But Poseidon payed attention to them.

"Hades, come", ordered Poseidon, noticing that Nico looked rather off.

Hades heaved a sigh and obeyed. The four of them went to another room – albeit due to the current state their house was in, it took them some time to find an empty room. The teens were on their phones spread out into different rooms of the house, stalking various websites – tumblr, facebook, twitter and some things that Hades couldn't even grasp what they were supposed to _be_. Stalking Percy's accounts, contacts, trying to find a digital footprint.

"What is it, boys?", asked Hades with a sigh. "We are a little busy right now."

"There's... We know why Percy left", admitted Jason awkwardly.

"W—What? Why didn't you say so earlier?", demanded Poseidon wide-eyed.

"Because... we were afraid... you'd... be disappointed in us", whispered Nico, averting his eyes.

Hades took a deep, calming breath, making sure his voice was even. "Whatever happened, we will not judge you. We love you, both of you. Just... tell us what happened."

"What we said earlier is true. We went after Percy, talked to him, got... through to him. We told him how much we care and what he means to us and all three of us were drunk and the moment just felt right and one thing led to another a—and then we... had sex", answered Nico, talking fast.

"Slow down, Nico", requested Poseidon, lifting both his hands up. "You... You h—had sex... with my son? With Percy? Both of you had sex with Percy a—and now he's gone?"

"Poseidon, love, calm down", whispered Hades, resting a hand on Poseidon's lower back. "Give them a moment to explain this, in words that will not result in you strangling them."

"I'm in love with him", whispered Nico softly and stared at the ground.

"We both are!", butted Jason in, looking a little desperate. "It just happened. I guess Nico fell first, but then I... too. It's really hard not to love him. He's so sweet and cute and it's like he makes you want to protect him, even though most the time, he can defend himself and-"

"Okay, okay, I know how love works", interrupted Poseidon with a frown. "So, to get this clear, you two have fallen in love with Percy and last night, when he got drunk for the first time in his life, you two decided it would be the ideal time to have sex with him?!"

"No. Like I said, we... were drunk too. We didn't think too much. It just felt... right", replied Nico.

"And Thanatos said he returns our feelings. That that's why he left – because he loves us too, but he feels like _he_ screwed up by having sex with us, like... like you wouldn't want him here anymore if you knew. B—But you... you wouldn't send either of us... away, right?", asked Jason timidly.

"You say you have serious feelings for him", said Poseidon slowly. "You're in love with him."

"Yes. Very much so", nodded Nico, looking up at him honestly. "I swear, I didn't mean to fall in love with him. When he told us he's your son, I was set on... on loving him like a sibling, just another member of our patchwork-family, but... I couldn't help it. The closer we grew, the more it developed into a romantic direction. I'm so sorry, but..."

"You can't help who you fall in love with, yes", sighed Hades and rubbed his face. "I just wish this would have been dealt with... differently. And without alcohol _or_ sex involved."

"S—So...", drawled Nico, shifting some as he looked at Hades.

"I don't know what will happen with you boys once we find Percy, but we will find him and bring him back here. You three sort that out yourselves and I don't care how that will unfold, but _whatever_ the outcome, we love all three of you and this is your home", stated Hades firmly, yet tenderly.

"Does that... mean... if... if we'd be like... Hazel, Frank and Leo...", started Jason slowly.

" _Whatever_ the outcome", repeated Hades softly. "But let's focus on getting Percy back now."

He grunted a little as Nico collided with him hard. Smiling a little strained, he wrapped his arms around Nico, hugging him close. Poseidon observed them, frowning thoughtful. So his little boy was out there, afraid he had destroyed their family? That they hated him for his... feelings? He knew Percy was a lot of work in progress, but that it was _that much_? He loved Percy unconditionally and he would not hold his feelings against the boy. Poseidon started to feel horrible.

"I think I need... some fresh air", sighed Poseidon and left the room.

/break\

Eating with his old friends had been nice, but when the sun went down, they left one by one. Dinner at home was ready, mom was waiting for them, they had homework to finish. So Percy was left to his own devices in the old haunted farm. No electricity and no running water. He went to his mother's old room and got out as many blankets as he could before building himself a nest of sorts.

He had no memories of the time his mom and dad had spend here, but when he looked around, he could imagine it. Poseidon and Sally, laughing and smiling, kissing and holding a baby-version of himself, singing him lullabies and kissing his cheeks. Tears ran down his cheeks.

His mother was gone. She would never return again. But Poseidon was still there. Percy had a chance at a good family, a good life. And he had thrown it out the window for selfish reasons. Just because he had been horny, he had lost everything! All he wanted was to be back home, because then he'd be in Poseidon's arms right now and Poseidon would hold him and tell him things were alright. But Poseidon wouldn't do that anymore. Not if he'd know what Percy had done.

Coughing a little, he tried to bury himself deeper in the blankets as a draft went through the old, badly isolated house. It was incredibly chilly, the night-air seeping in from various ends.

/break\

"Thank you for your help", said Hades with a tired smile.

He shook Hephaestus' hand, while Esperanza hugged Poseidon. "Oh, no worries. If one of my babies would be gone, I'd be out of my mind too. We'll help as best as we can."

"What she said", grunted Hephaestus gruffly as the couple left.

Poseidon's heart clenched as he watched them go. All their friends had returned home for the night. They had spend all day without any leads. Someone had seen Percy at a bus-station in New York, but they hadn't seen into what bus Percy had gone. No leads. Percy was gone. Hades laid his arms around Poseidon, knowing that his lover was short of collapsing again. The lawyer tried to steer Poseidon into the direction of their bedroom, but before they could reach it, they heard a suspicious noise. With six children in the house, no noise ever sounded really suspicious to them anymore. But the noise in question had come from Percy's room. Poseidon's eyes sparkled as he stormed into the room, hoping against all odds that Percy had returned. He was very disappointed but also as surprised at what they found. Bianca and Hazel were cuddled together on Percy's bed, Jason and Nico opposite them and between them Tyson. Tyson was clutching a stuffed Flounder that he had gotten from Percy in the Disney store in London. Triton and Thanatos were sitting at the window, looking out and talking softly to one another. Poseidon and Hades slowly approached.

"What are you doing here?", asked Poseidon slowly, eyes large.

"Couldn't sleep", sighed Hazel, nose buried in Tyson's hair.

"And I heard Tyson crying in here, so we went to look for him", answered Bianca softly.

"W—Why would he go? I thought he loved us", sobbed Tyson, clutching Flounder tighter.

"He does", whispered Nico from Tyson's other side. "I promise you, he does. He loves you a lot."

"Then why did he leave?", asked Bianca with the slightest glare. "Why would he worry us?"

Nico averted his eyes and hugged Tyson a little closer. He couldn't tell them that it's all his and Jason's fault. He could feel Jason's arms around his waist tightening, was glad for the warmth of Jason's embrace from behind. He felt so guilty for it all and the weight of Percy's note in his pocket seemed to burn a hole through his jeans. They should have stopped it. Stopped him.

"You think there's some more room in that bed?", asked Poseidon tired.

There was a reason why they all had giant beds in this house. Family-cuddles had always been important for them, as well as sleep-overs from friends of their children. The five youngest scooted closer together so Poseidon and Hades could lay on the girls' side of the bed. Triton and Thanatos too stood to join the rest of the family. Tyson was pretty much squished in the middle of the bed, but he didn't mind. What he minded was that his Percy wasn't there.

/The Note\

_I'm sorry. For everything, for coming into your lives and turning them upside-down. For ruining everything. I just can't. Can't stay here, not after what happened. I love you. All of you. Hug Ty from me, please. And tell dad that I'm sorry. But I can't stay here with you anymore._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will have the big reunion between the family! Lots of cuddles and hurt/comfort and teary moments between Percy and Poseidon. Also, our threesome will officially get together!


	16. Feeling Safe and Loved

Chapter 16: Feeling Safe and Loved

Mike had packed a lunch packet for Percy as he entered the farm. Shuddering, he pulled his jacket closer. He was worried because Percy had spend the whole night in this not isolated, not heated and way too chilly house. Which was why he had cut school short today to go and check on him.

"Percy?", called Mike out, frowning concerned as he didn't get an answer. "I bring food!"

A raspy coughing was the first thing he heard. He picked up his pace as he made his way to Percy's old room. What he found was worrisome. Percy was pale, shivering badly, with a sheet of sweat covering his skin. Mike rushed over to him to check his temperature.

"Shit, Percy...", sighed Mike, knitting his eyebrows.

Heaving another sigh, Mike contemplated what to do. He knew Percy was hiding here because he was afraid and because he didn't want to be found. But he was obviously sick and Mike couldn't imagine how much Percy's family must already be worrying. He felt bad for betraying Percy's trust like that and he knew that Percy may even hate him for the betrayal, but right now, Percy's health was more important than what Percy wanted. Fishing for his smartphone, he went to google Hades di Angelo to get the phone-number of the rich lawyer.

/break\

It was barely sunrise and the family that had spend half the night talking about Percy, sharing their favorite memories that they had made in the past months with Percy. There had been a lot of tears but also a lot of laughter. Even though Percy hadn't been with them for too long, each had something about Percy that they cherished and that made their hearts open up – may it be the prank he had pulled on Drew, or how adorable he had been when he had shot Artemis by accident, the way he was with Blackjack, how cute he had acted in _The Who Shop_ , how he played with Tyson. It had been late and dark by the time the children had fallen asleep one by one. So when with sunrise, Hades' cellphone went off, Poseidon glared at his lover. The least their kids deserved was to sleep in today, after all. Hades grinned sheepishly and got his phone out of his pants. Due to them falling asleep after talking so long, they all were still dressed and Hades hadn't turned off his phones. He glared at his work-phone, vowing to tear his assistant a new one if this wasn't a matter of life or death. After all, Eris knew exactly what was going on with him right now.

"What is it, Miss Discordia?", growled Hades, turning away from the bed not to wake someone.

"Not in that tone of voice, mister", chided his bossy and sassy assistant. "There's a boy on the phone who says he knows where your lost boy is. Apparently, he googled you because he didn't know your number. Now, do you want me to put him through or not?"

Hades froze and sat up slowly. "Put him through, Eris."

There was a beeping and then the call connected. "H—Hello? Mister di Angelo?"

"Yes. Who are you?", inquired Hades skeptically.

"My name is Michael Kahale, I'm the son of the owner of the beauty salon, Venus Kahale. She, uhm, introduced us on Sally's funeral?", offered the obviously nervous boy.

"Ah. Yes, I remember you. You're one of Percy's old friends", nodded Hades. "What do you know?"

The sound of Percy's name got not just Poseidon's attention. By now, Triton, Thanatos and Bianca were awake too. The three oldest also sat up, looking eager, concerned and curious.

"He's here. At his grandparents' old farm", replied Mike, sounding guilty. "He made us promise not to call, but when I checked on him this morning, he was sick. Like, really sick. He hasn't been responsive at all and I'm worried about him, so could you come here and take care of him, please?"

"Of course. We're on our way", agreed Hades sharply. "Thank you, very much."

The call disconnected and Hades was nearly thrown off the bed by the weight of his combined children. Hazel and Tyson were practically sitting on his lap, staring at him with large eyes.

"Where's Percy? You said his name! Who was that?", asked Hazel concerned.

"Where's my Percy?", asked Tyson, lower lip quivering nervously. "Do we bring him back?"

Bianca, Nico, a very sleepy Jason, Triton and Thanatos were sitting in a half-circle around them and Poseidon, he was already up and pacing. Hades frowned thoughtful, looking from one to the other.

"That was Percy's friend Mike. Apparently, Percy is at the old Linwood Farm", replied Hades.

"...How did none of us think of _that_?", asked Bianca astonished.

"What does it matter! When do we leave?!", exclaimed Nico and jumped out of the bed.

"No", interrupted Hades firmly, yet keeping his voice soft. "You children will stay here. Poseidon and I will go on our own. Percy ran, we wouldn't want him to feel cornered. Let your dad and me go and talk to him, assure him he's welcome to come back and that we want him here. _Then_ , we'll bring him here and you all get to coddle him. But not too much at once, okay?"

The kids were quite obviously not okay with it, but Hades didn't give them much of a choice.

/break\

When Percy woke up, it felt like a deja-vu. The ceiling of a hospital room, but in front of it, right in Percy's line of sight, the grinning, blonde doctor. Everything hurt too and for a panicked moment he feared that this was like in TV-shows when the main character dreamed some kind of weird but awesome life while hanging between life and death – and maybe, Poseidon and Hades and everyone else had only been pieces of his imagination. Was this it? Was it right after the accident, would he... have to go back to Gabe? But maybe his mom was still alive. Maybe reality wasn't that bad.

"Good morning", greeted Doctor Solace with a smile brighter than the sun. "How are you feeling?"

"What... happened?", asked Percy fearfully. "Where's... Where's my mom?"

The blonde frowned concerned. "Percy, what month do you _think_ it is?"

"I don't know", admitted Percy with a frown. "Everything... is a little fuzzy, I..."

"You ran away from home and got yourself a pneumonia when sleeping in a barn", stated Apollo. "I'm Doctor Solace, if... you don't remember. Now, how about you rest some more and we talk then? Hopefully things are clearer by then, mh?"

"Doctor Solace...", repeated Percy, finding himself relieved. "No. I, uhm, I remember. I just... Yeah. I'll... I should sleep some more, I guess. I don't feel well... My chest... feels heavy..."

"That may be the pneumonia. Or Tyson", suggested Apollo amused. "Well, sleep well."

Percy frowned, turning his head a little to look down. The heaviness on his chest really was Tyson. The little brunette was laying on the bed with him, half on top of him, little hands clawed into Percy's hospital gown like he was afraid Percy would run away again. So everything was real after all. He remembered the barn, how he had been shivering and freezing and how tired he had been. But how had he ended up in the hospital? And what was Tyson doing here? Percy turned enough to look around the room. Next to his bed, with their heads resting on the bed, were Jason and Nico, both deep asleep. Bianca and Hazel were laying on the hospital bed next to Percy's, also sound asleep. Thanatos and Triton were sitting on the visitor's chairs between the beds, equally asleep, with Triton's leaning against Thanatos' shoulder. Percy frowned confused. He had run away to save them from the trouble. Why were they here now? It didn't make sense.

"Percy! Percy, you're awake!", exclaimed the excited voice of Poseidon as the door burst open.

Percy startled a little as Hades and Poseidon basically stumbled into the room. Poseidon's eyes were wide with worry as he rushed over to Percy's bedside (not the window-side that was occupied by Jason and Nico). Percy frowned upset. Of course they came, they didn't know what Percy had done.

"How are you feeling? We met Doctor Solace when we were in the cafeteria to drink a coffee – after five hours, I finally get Poseidon out of your room and you decide to chose that exact moment to wake up, of course you do", grunted Hades a little amused. "He said you seemed... confused."

"I... I'm good...", muttered Percy, coughing violently. "Well, 'good' maybe a bit of a stretch..."

"At least you're awake and coherent", smiled Poseidon, grasping Percy's face between both hands and kissing his forehead. "I was so worried when we came to the barn to pick you up and you were so... out of it. We brought you to the hospital right away."

"Why are you so loud, dad?", yawned Hazel on the other bed.

"Percy woke up", replied Hades amused, taking a seat at the foot-end of the bed.

Hazel instantly started shaking Bianca awake and they then continued waking the boys. All of a sudden, everyone was awake and talking at once while trying to hug Percy. It was entirely too overwhelming and he fell into another coughing fit, this one a little more violent due to stress.

"Why don't you kids go to the cafeteria? Get some food and something to drink", suggested Hades.

It was phrased as a suggestion, but the tone left no room for discussions. A hard, stern glare from Hades animated Jason and Nico to obey, but the hardest was to pry Tyson off of Percy.

"Come now. He'll still be here when we get back", promised Triton, tugging a little on Tyson.

"You'll get chocolate cake", promised Thanatos with a grin. "And our fathers will stay here and watch over Percy, make sure he can't run. Come on, Ty, mh?"

"..Cake...?", asked Tyson with a thoughtful frown. "No. Percy's better than cake."

Percy's heart ached at that. He had abandoned Tyson and still, the little boy would rather stay here with Percy than eat cake, even though Percy knew how much Tyson loved chocolate and cake. He had seen Tyson running close to lightning speed at the mention of chocolate cake before.

"Go with them", whispered Percy with a small grin, ruffling Tyson's hair. "I'll wait here for you."

"O... Okay... if you say", nodded Tyson reluctantly, kissing Percy's cheek. "I love you, big brother."

Percy's heart ached some more. The siblings and Jason left, so only Hades and Poseidon remained with Percy. Percy shifted some, trying to sit up, to defend himself. Poseidon pushed back.

"You, stay put", glared Poseidon seriously. "You need to rest. No leaving this bed. You've been out of it for _two days_. The kids have been taking over your room yesterday, not leaving your side."

"Two days...?", asked Percy surprised.

"You worried us to death", grunted Hades with a frown. "You shouldn't have run away in the first place, Perseus. But... I suppose it was our fault, if you didn't feel like you could stay here."

"It's not your fault!", exclaimed Percy wide-eyed, staring upset at them before averting his eyes. "It's all my fault. Y—You shouldn't have come after me. If you'd know what... what I did, you'd regret having come for _me_. It was a waste of time. I... I'm a waste of time..."

"Do never, not ever, call _any_ of my children a waste of time again, Perseus", warned Hades darkly. "I'm aware that you didn't have the best of childhoods and that you have... issues because of that, but whatever issues you have, they're part of _you_ and we love you, all of you. You're a part of this messy family, regardless of how messed-up you are. It only makes you fit in better, Percy."

He smiled the faintest bit and ruffled Percy's hair, which only caused Percy to look more intensely at his lap. "B—But I'm... I'm more than messed up. Y—You wouldn't-"

"You had sex with Jason and Nico", interrupted Poseidon, voice even. "We know."

Percy's head snapped up and he stared over at Poseidon. "T—Then why did you come for me...?"

"Because, as Hades said, you're part of this family, you're loved for who you are, wholly, not partially. We don't _pick_ family, not even in a family of choice like ours. We just... fell together and we stick together", replied Poseidon seriously. "You're my son, my flesh and blood, and I've missed so many years with you, so many times where I should have been there to hold you and comfort you and support you. I will _never_ abandon you again, Percy. I love you, you're my son."

"B—But... I... I made a mistake, I screwed up badly a—and-", started Percy stubbornly.

"You're only human, Percy", whispered Poseidon tenderly, taking Percy's face into his hands again to force Percy to look at him. "And humans make mistakes. Every single one of us has made mistakes. My mistake was not fighting for shared custody, not fighting for _you_. If we'd turn our backs on everyone who makes a mistake, there would be no one left in this family, Percy."

"The real question is, was it really a mistake?", inquired Hades, earning a glare from Poseidon. "No, no, no. You said to be all cushy about this and let him heal, but I'd like to get this issue addressed first, because I'm not risking the rascal running off again. Now, Percy. A mistake is something you regret doing. Do you regret it, do you honestly regret it?"

"I—I... I ruined their relationship and Nico is your son, which makes him like my brother, right? I shouldn't have done this and we were drunk too and...", rambled Percy desperately.

"That sounds like a bunch of excuses, not like you truly regret it", pointed Hades out, arching one eyebrow. "Because we have to get this straight right now, Percy. We don't want to force you to do anything, Percy. If you truly feel like you don't belong to this family anymore, then... you don't have to stay. But tell us so and we'll set everything up for you, get you an apartment or something. You're not going to live on the streets or in a shabby barn. But just because we would support you leaving does not mean we _want_ you to leave. We want you to stay a part of this family."

"But... Jason and Nico...", tried Percy once more.

"Seriously, it's like you're trying to make us send you away", sighed Hades and shook his head. "I don't know the details of what happened between the three of you and I'm afraid you'd have to talk this out with them, but _whatever_ the outcome, you are welcome at our home, as part of our family. Believe me, at first I wasn't thrilled about Hazel's two boyfriends either. But I managed to arrange myself with it. I believe, given time, I would get used to the idea of you and Nico and Jason too. Because you and Nico are not brothers, you're not related by blood and I may want all of us as a family, but I'm also aware that we're a different brand of family already and that you two are neither related by blood, nor have you two been raised together, as siblings. You can't help who you fall in love with, Percy. And forcing you to pretend to be someone you are not, to deny the feelings you have, it would go against everything _I_ have been fighting for all my life as a gay man."

Percy averted his eyes while Hades and Poseidon exchanged a look. Poseidon leaned down once more to kiss Percy's forehead and brush the hair out of Percy's face. Percy was still in shock.

"We'll leave you to rest some more and check on the kids", said Poseidon softly. "Don't think about running. We bribed the nurses into being your prison guards. You are not escaping this hospital."

Poseidon laughed good-naturally and left the room together with Hades. Percy tried to fall asleep again, but he couldn't. His mind was racing and he was so nervous and confused. But when his door opened again, he wished he would have managed to fall asleep. But now it was too late. He stared like a wide-eyed doe at Jason and Nico like they were a car, heading toward him for the crash.

"Hey", whispered Nico softly. "H—How are you feeling, Perce?"

"Tired. And my chest aches from all the coughing", sighed Percy, turning to look out the window.

"We're sorry", mumbled Jason awkwardly, shifting around a little.

"Mh?", grunted Percy confused, redirecting his gaze to look at the couple again. "What?"

"We're sorry for putting you into this situation, for taking advantage of you when you were drunk. We shouldn't have pressured you into things", sighed Jason, rubbing his face.

"What?", repeated Percy, his face even more confused than before.

"We never meant for things to happen like this. We've tried to keep our feelings for you at bay, but seeing you so... desperate and broken, we just... wanted to fix you, to put you back together again", clarified Nico as they approached the bed. "We're sorry if our advances were unwanted, we promise we'll never do anything like it again and if you want to, we can forget all about it. We'll never speak of it again, if that's what you want. Everything if you'd only just stop running and _stay_."

"...What?", tried Percy for a third time, coughing a little. "I don't... Feelings? F—For me?"

"We love you", said Jason firmly, looking deep into Percy's eyes. "Very much. Which is why we're so sorry for how things went, but it's just been _so hard_ to bottle it all up and not tell you how amazing and wonderful and lovable you are. But I suppose alcohol loosens the tongue and inhibitions. We just... couldn't keep it to ourselves anymore. But if you don't, I mean, we completely understand if you're not interested, we'll respect it, Percy. We just want you to know that... we didn't sleep with you just because we were horny bastards but because we love you."

Percy frowned. Hades and Poseidon must have known about them from Jason and Nico and if Jason was saying they loved him and Hades had said he could stay whatever would happen, then did this mean Hades and Poseidon knew about those feelings. Did this mean they accepted it?

"I... I love you too", whispered Percy, barely audible, wringing his hands. "But... But we can't, I mean, can we? Because I'd... want to, but... what will the others think?"

Now Jason and Nico were at a loss too. Sure, Thanatos had told them that Percy returned their feelings, but Thanatos was one source and to hear it from Percy himself was something else entirely. They stared – more like gaped – until Percy's face took an embarrassed red shade.

"If... If you'd want us, I mean, we wouldn't... turn you down. We'd be there for you, whatever anyone else may say. We'd be in on this together", promised Nico, grasping Percy's hand.

"So... does that mean... you'd, uhm, give us a chance?", asked Jason with wide, hopeful eyes.

"If... you'd want me and _only_ if... if it doesn't get us into trouble", nodded Percy slowly. "I want... I want you, but I also want to stay with this family. I've never experienced family like this and I don't want to lose it again. Please. I—I mean, Hades said earlier that he would... could... that..."

"Yeah, he said something like this to us too", interrupted Nico with a sharp nod.

Before Percy could comprehend what was happening, Nico and Jason were on the bed with him, Jason crawling over him to lay on his other side. They laid down, with their heads resting on Percy's shoulders and both leaned in to kiss his cheeks. His cheeks which were aflame now.

"Or do you mind?", asked Jason with a grin against Percy's soft skin.

"Uhm... N—No", replied Percy and took a shaky breath to calm down. "It's all I wanted since I woke up, actually. I _really_ wanted to stay and cuddle with you. But I felt way too guilty."

"Funny. So did we", grunted Nico, catching Percy's earlobe with his teeth and tugging a little. "But unlike you, we didn't run away. Don't _ever_ do that again, Percy. Even if you think something went wrong, please talk to us first. You're not alone anymore. You worried _all of us_ a lot. Not just Jay and me, who we blamed our selves. Dad was devastated and papà turned every stone looking for you and Hazel and Bianca had been crying a lot and don't even get me started on _Tyson_."

"Our friends worried too", added Jason, kissing Percy's cheek again. "Especially Leo. He like adopted you already. And Clarisse and Silena and, well, basically everyone, really."

"Yeah, I can see Drew crying into her pillow over the loss", snorted Percy.

Nico and Jason laughed at that and got some more comfortable. They wrapped their arms around Percy, holding onto him. And Percy, he felt like being home. Laying there, with Jason and Nico on either side of him, holding onto him, he felt safe and loved and content. Finally, he fell asleep.

/break\

Percy was released from the hospital the next day, with Doctor Solace threatening him to visit and check on him every day. That had been four days ago and Percy was still conflicted about his feelings. Everyone was constantly tending to him. They brought him soup, tea, anything he wanted. Heck, Hazel had even come and asked him if she should fluff his pillow. And Tyson didn't leave his room at all. He also kept drawing pictures for Percy and telling him about his days.

"Ty, you have a visitor. Ella is here and really wants to play with you."

Tyson and Percy turned to look at Poseidon. Tyson's face was scrunched up into a thoughtful frown, looking from Percy to Poseidon and back. Percy smiled amused by Tyson's facial expressions.

"Go on", urged Percy on, nudging his little brother. "I wanted to nap anyway. That's boring."

Tyson nodded in agreement and kissed Percy's cheek. "Don't run away while I'm gone!"

"Ouch", winced Hades sympathetically as Tyson passed him.

"Oh, I got used to it by now", chuckled Percy wryly. "He's not as bad as Jason and Nico..."

"So your boyfriends are giving you a hard time?", teased Poseidon amused.

He walked over to the bed and laid down next to his by now darkly blushing son. They hadn't actually _talked_ about this again. On that day in the hospital, Poseidon and the others had found Percy, Nico and Jason deep asleep and cuddled closely together. They hadn't commented on it and so far, the new threesome hadn't displayed their affections in front of the family either. Poseidon however was afraid that not talking about it may cause Percy to run again.

"...Yeah. Nico says that it really freaked Jason out. Jason says that it really freaked Nico out. Basically, both were worried sick, but feel better about admitting that the other was scared", replied Percy reluctantly. "They're both being adorable dorks, really. I... really love them. A lot."

"I know", sighed Poseidon softly. "I've been watching the three of you since you came back from the hospital. I can _see_ how much you love them and how much they love you."

"A—And... you're okay with it?", asked Percy, still a bit afraid.

"Percy, we love all three of you. It's... strange, I'll admit that. After all, both of you are sons to me. But I know that the two of you aren't brothers to each other. Like Hades said, we'll need some time to get used to it, but we will, I promise", replied Poseidon, pulling Percy close.

The teen snuggled up to his dad, closing his eyes. "Thank you. For everything. For loving me."

"Thank you", countered Poseidon softly, kissing the top of Percy's head. "For not running away again and for trusting us enough to be honest. I know it's hard, forming this new bond between us, but you're my son and I want to try my best to prove it to you. I hope you can give this an honest chance. No more running, but instead trying to communicate, okay?"

"Okay", nodded Percy, resting his head on Poseidon's chest. "Can we watch a movie, dad?"

"If you want to", nodded Poseidon, smiling fondly down at his son.

/break\

Poseidon was just getting out of the shower. Tyson and Ella had joined their movie and once _Finding Nemo_ was over and Poseidon had ushered the children back over to Tyson's room to head to bed. After all, it was already late and if he was being honest, Poseidon was already tired too.

"Mh... what did I do to deserve that treat?", commented Hades, voice dripping appreciation.

Poseidon blushed. He was naked. Glaring a little at his boyfriend, he walked over to their closet. Once in front of it, he grinned a little to himself. Getting into a fresh pair of boxers, he grabbed one of Hades' posh silken shirts and slipped it on. He could hear the low growl from the bed. Grinning broadly, Poseidon turned back and walked over to the bed. He knew Hades loved seeing him in the fancy clothes – the closest he got to wearing a dress-shirt was when he wore one of his Hawaiian shirts, normally he was only into jeans and t-shirts. Climbing onto the bed, he straddled Hades' waist and bend over to kiss his boyfriend quite passionately. Passionately enough to steal Hades' breath. The lawyer was gaping up at him, arms loosely around Poseidon's waist.

"What did I do to deserve that?", inquired Hades, now honestly curious.

"Being the most accepting and wonderful person on this planet", replied Poseidon casually.

He grinned and pecked Hades' nose before rolled over onto his half of their bed. Hades smiled as he turned onto his side to watch how his lover got settled for the night. Ever since Percy had been released from the hospital, he had kept Poseidon on his toes – unintentionally so. It was just that Poseidon tried to make everything perfect and keep Percy content.

"Everything for you and our family", whispered Hades, kissing Poseidon softly. "Good night, love."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will have looots of threesome-fluff and them going on their first date and telling their friends about their relationship! Lots of cuteness there!


	17. One Street, One Family

Chapter 17: One Street, One Family

Percy loved the feeling of the wind tugging on his hair and clothes. He loved the race. And that Tyson was happily screaming next to him, riding on Rainbow and trying to keep up with Blackjack. When Percy had woken up this morning, he had found a letter on his bedside with a silly little riddle that had led him downstairs to the kitchen and after figuring it out, had instructed him to make scrambled eggs. He had found another riddle in the box of eggs and the sizzling bacon had lured Tyson in, who decided to join Percy on his little scavenger hunt. The riddle with the eggs led them to the stables and the so far last clue had send the two brothers to the lake. He was really curious what they'd find there. After all, it was Sunday and since Friday, he felt better, so tomorrow he would be allowed to go to school again. Maybe a surprise from his dads?

"Oh. More food!", exclaimed Tyson happily as he jumped off Rainbow.

Percy frowned confused. There were two blankets set out – one with a giant pile of pillows and the other with what was quite obviously a romantic picnic. Candles, flowers, proper dishes and not just paper plates with sandwiches. This was certainly not just a friendly family-dinner. Sea-green eyes scanned the surroundings and found two awkwardly blushing boys in the lake. Both Jason and Nico were up to their noses under the water, the visible parts of their faces beet-red, indicating that everything below the surface was naked. Percy blinked slowly, eyes darting to the blanket with the ton of pillows and the other with the romantic dinner. This looked a lot like those two were trying to seduce him. Which meant that Tyson was completely out of place here.

"Uhm, Ty...", started Percy, cheeks red as he knelt down to be on eye-level. "I... think that Nico and Jason want to... uh... spend some time with me. You and I have been playing with each other so much since I got back home, but I barely spend time with Jay and Nick. Do you think... you could go back to the mansion alone and give me some time to... uh, to play with Jason and Nico?"

Ty frowned confused, but then he nodded in understanding. He liked spending time all alone with Percy too, because Percy was awesome. But he had spend so much time with Percy that the others didn't get much Percy-time. Maybe he should give his other siblings a chance to have awesome Percy-time too. Still, he stole a blue cupcake before climbing back onto Rainbow's back.

"Okay. Have fun, big brother!", chimed Tyson and waved wildly.

Percy had to keep from bursting into laughter. The way this looked, he surely was going to have a lot of 'fun'. By the time he turned around, he found himself face-to-face with his very deliciously naked and dripping wet boyfriends. A blush dusted his cheeks. They were indeed very naked. The last time he had seen them naked, he had been drunk. The water running down their bodies, nipples hard from the cold air on the wet skin, muscles taunt. Percy gulped hard to swallow all the drool.

"Hey", greeted Percy, waving a little. "So... what's all of this?"

"We know how much you like adventures and treasure-hunts, so we figured we'd make the invitation to our first proper date fun", explained Jason sheepishly. "Ty was not part of the plan."

"This... is our first proper date...?", asked Percy shyly, looking around again.

"We love you and we're sorry about screwing our first time up like that", replied Nico and walked up to Percy, laying his arms around the Jackson. "So we figured we could start over. A fun treasure hunt, leading to the lake where we'll go skinny-dipping and afterward having a romantic dinner together, ending the night with not-drunken sex during the sunset. Sounds like a plan?"

The answer he got was a passionate and hungry kiss from Percy, who practically threw himself at Nico. Grinning into the kiss, Nico started to undress Percy. Jason was more than eager to help him. By the end of the kiss, Percy was as naked as his two boyfriends, cheeks flushed in embarrassment. They hadn't been naked in front of each other, at least not in a sober state. Percy jumped slightly as Jason trailed his hands down Percy's spine to cup his butt and squeeze.

"I think there was a mention of swimming before screwing", argued Percy amused.

"Right. Sorry. First fun, then food, last fucking", agreed Jason with a sheepish grin, kissing him.

"Love-making", corrected Nico, elbowing his blonde. "We agreed to do it _proper_ , Jay."

Percy couldn't help but giggle. Those two were so amazing and so adorable. Taking them both by the hands, he pulled them over to the lake and jumped in. For the next hour, they had fun swimming, diving, laughing and playing until they were hungry and exhausted. There had also been a lot of teasing, seeing as all of them were naked, so Percy was more than eager to get to the eating and then to the love-making. His face heated up at that thought. It was incredibly cute that they were trying to make up for their bad start. Torn between panting and laughing, Percy collapsed on the pile of pillows. Jason fetched three fluffy towels, hanging one around his own neck and handing the others over to his boyfriends. Nico all the while got them a bit of everything from the buffet before joining his lovers on the pillows. This was perfections, thought Percy as he got hand-fed a strawberry from Nico. He was half-sprawled out over both his boyfriends, getting fed by Nico and having his hair caressed by Jason. Now that was the life. For a boy who was so used to doing everything himself and having to fend and care for himself, it was an intensely amazing feeling to be taken care of like that and just once enjoy being spoiled.

"Well... while we got you all to ourselves for once...", started Jason reluctantly, trailing kisses along Percy's neck while Nico fed Percy a bacon-wrapped-date. "You'll get back to school on Monday, so... uhm... You and Nico and me... I mean, I'd get if you don't want it to be public, because you've been so... disturbingly self-conscious about things... Just to know how we're supposed to behave, you know? Like, can we... tell our friends? Kiss you during the breaks? Hold your hands?"

"Cheer loudly and embarrassingly proud during the drama club performance and claim 'That's our boyfriend!'?", added Nico with a teasing grin. "What Jason is trying to say is that we're willing to take it at your pace. Whatever you want is fine by us, Percy. Just tell us."

Percy blushed a little and opened up for a grilled aubergine, glad to have his mouth occupied. Jason had a point. He had never been self-conscious. But then again, he never had that much to lose before. It had been just entirely too much pressure – having a set of loving parents, all those amazing siblings, two boys he loved, friends who cared about him, a school that was actually fun to visit, even pets. This was more than he had ever dared to wish for so even the slightest chance of losing it again had send him into a panic and made him run. But seeing how much running had hurt them all – the sadness and guilt in Poseidon's eyes, the way Tyson barely left his side in fear of Percy disappearing, how even Hazel had cried him a river about how worried she had been for him. He was never going to run again. It was time to put the pampered, spoiled Percy Jackson back and get his old self back. The one who didn't give a damn about what others thought. So he was a freak and outcast, whatever. As long as he could stay true to himself, it didn't matter to him. As long as he had the one person he loved and who loved him – his mother. Now he had more people who he cared for, but those people were there for him, accepted him, _loved_ him. So who cared about the others? Who was he, the rebel and freak, to let anyone judge him?

"I want the cheering and a giant sign when you sit in first row", decided Percy with a grin, pecking Nico's lips. "And holding hands. Lots of holding hands. I don't... want to overdo it with the PDA, but I don't want to... hide. I want us and as long as our family is on our side, that's all I need."

"Good", grinned Jason happily and relieved, kissing Percy's neck.

"Piper, Leo, Frank and Reyna already know, don't they?", asked Percy with a slight deadpan.

"Leo and Frank are only partially my fault!", argued Jason with a blush. "I blame Hazel."

Percy snorted amused and twisted enough to straddle Jason's lap and kiss him properly. "How you ever lived through keeping your crush on Nico a secret for so long is beyond me... You're horrible at secrets, Jay. Now that we're done eating, do we... get to dessert?"

"Yes, please", purred Jason delighted, arms around Percy's waist.

Nico smiled as he watched his boyfriends make out. He and Jason had – granted, with the help of Silena – planned today to be perfect, partially because they wanted to assure Percy that they were on the same page, that they loved him and that even when school started again for him, he'd still have Jason and Nico to back him up. The Italian reached under the pillows to get the lube out and started making his fingers slick. Teasingly circling Percy's hole, he leaned over the kneeling boy to kiss along his shoulders and neck. Percy gasped at the sudden touch, turning a little.

"Tell us how you want this", offered Nico, voice low and rough.

"How about the other way around this time?", suggested Percy with a grin and turned around in Nico's embrace. "This time, I want Jay inside of me while I suck you off. Sounds good?"

"We do have quite the list of things to try, so that sounds like a good start", agreed Jason hungrily, licking his lips as he watched up-close how Nico prepared their lover. "Sounds perfect, really."

"He's adorable when he's horny", snorted Percy amused, wiggling his ass some.

Nico snorted and nodded in agreement as he added a finger from his other hand, spreading Percy's hole some and squeezing his ass. Percy arched his back, fingers clawing into Nico's shoulders.

"Ah, if you can't keep your claws in, we need to tie you down, kitten", hissed Nico under pain.

"Wimp", teased Percy, biting Nico's neck. "But... if you want to tie me down..."

Nico snorted again when he saw the blush dusting Percy's cheeks. He was really good at finding cute boyfriends. He gave Jason a signal from behind Percy's back and the blonde was more than eager to get a piece of satin that had previously been questioned by Nico and Jason and deemed 'absolutely necessary' by Silena. That woman would be the death of them all, but bless her naughty heart. Jason grabbed Percy's arms, tender but firm, and twisted them behind the boy's back. Grinning over his shoulder, Percy watched how Jason tied his wrists behind his back.

"Someone came prepared", teased Percy amused and excited, heart beating in his throat.

"Speaking of prepared...", started Nico, squeezing Percy again. "Think you're ready for more fun?"

All Percy could do was nod wildly. Oh, he was more than ready. He wanted to savor every second of this, not one moment should be blurred like the last time. He took a nervously shaky breath as Jason slowly lowered him into the blonde's cock, grip on Percy's waist tight and reassuring. It was a strange sensation to be unable to move his hands. For one, it meant he had to put a lot of trust into Jason and Nico to do the right things, but it also gave him an exquisite excuse to just lean back and enjoy his lovers. It was a weird balance of things, really. He took another shaky breath as all of Jason was seated inside of him. Nico in front of him stood until the Italian's cock was pointing straight at Percy's face. Licking his lips, he looked up at Nico with his sea-green, curious eyes.

"There something you want me to do?", inquired Percy innocently and with a cheeky grin.

Huffing at the cheeky brat in front of him, Nico curled his fingers into Percy's hair and gently, but determinedly, guided Percy's head closer to his cock. Though, two could play that game. Grinning borderline wickedly, he took a step back. Percy stared confused at him and wanted to reach out to pull him back – just to remember that his arms were tied behind his back. When Nico made no motion to move closer again, Percy leaned forward to reach him, pulling off Jason's cock nearly completely in favor to wrap his lips around Nico's dick. Oh. Bastard. Frowning slightly annoyed, he sat back down in Jason's lap to get off Nico's cock, effectively impaling himself on Jason's.

"Well, doctor said he should get back into exercising after the bed-rest, right?", asked Nico.

"You're a class-a bastard and I love you", snorted Jason amused and shook his head.

"Gotta make him work for his treat, eh?", snickered Nico and patted Percy's hair.

Percy's face was dark red as he tried to glare fiercely at the Italian. This was just mean. Then again, last time they had done this he had pretty much let them do all the work and he had just taken. And knowing Jason and Nico, they wouldn't make him do all the work the whole time anyway, so why not for a bit? He continued leaning back and forth, fucking himself on Jason's cock and sucking Nico off, until he found a pretty good rhythm to it. He had also found a pretty good angle where he hit his prostate with that very nice cock of Jay's. Yes, this was turning into a lot of fun. Now if he could move his hands and jerk off, it would be a sealed deal.

"Would one of you mind getting me off?", asked Percy as he reluctantly let go of Nico's dick.

Nico gulped hard as he saw the swollen lips with a little bit of Nico's pre-cum pearling on them. This image, he'd have frozen in his head for later usage. Nodding hastily, he motioned for Jason. Jason grinned amused, enjoying the highly distracted look on Nico's face. He wound his arms around Percy's waist, running one hand up and down Percy's thigh as he wrapped the other around Percy's cock and started massaging and teasing it. A blissful moan escaped Percy's lips as he resumed his previous motions. He picked up the pace and used his tongue to tease Nico in all the right places until the Italian gave in and came as the first of the threesome. Groaning softly, Nico came in Percy's mouth and Percy tried his best to swallow as much as he could, but by the time Nico pulled out, cum was running down Percy's chin and Nico had to correct himself – _that_ image would be saved for later usage. Out of breath, the Italian collapsed on the pillows and watched how Jason changed positions, laying Percy out beneath him so he could look into those sea-green eyes while fucking the other boy. Percy grinned, pleased to get the chance to just lay and enjoy too. Nico adjusted himself so he could kiss Percy and continue jerking Percy off while Jason used both hands to hold onto Percy's hips while he thrust hard and deep. It didn't take the green-eyed teen long to come into Nico's hand, going slack in Jason's hold and relishing in the afterglow while Jason still hit his prostate until the blonde too reached his orgasm and came deep inside Percy.

"Had fun?", asked Jason teasingly as he laid down on Percy's other side.

"Mh... very much", yawned Percy, snuggling up to them. "I love you guys..."

He cracked one eye open to see the face-splitting grins on both his boyfriends' faces. Cute dorks.

/break\

Monday started out great. When Percy entered the classroom, he found himself on the bottom of a body-pile, with Grover, Piper, Rachel and Leo basically suffocating him. Chris, Frank and Malcolm were content enough with a bro-hug or a fist-bump. Generally, everyone seemed pretty happy that he was back – and as great as that made him feel, it also made him feel like crap for worrying them in the first place. He had a feeling he was now officially stuck in Myosotis Lane. No more running.

"So, where have you been?", inquired Piper as the two of them sat together between classes.

Percy wanted to go over some scenes – even though he had his scenes with Sherlock/Annabeth down by heart, he still struggled with the Moriarty/Piper parts. He liked Rachel's twist of Moriarty and Irene Adler teaming up on Holmes, but both with their own goals in the back of their heads and thus failing in the end. It was cute and granted, it remembered him of some of Rachel's Moriarty/Holmes fanfictions, if he was being honest (but he wouldn't. He valued his life too much).

"At the old farm my grandparents owned", answered Percy. "The thing is... no electricity, no gas. Not good for your health, living in an old barn. Like I haven't worried dad enough already, but me being sick had send him into total over-dad-mode. The only one worse was Tyson..."

Piper snickered a little and gave him a look that clearly said that it was Percy's own fault for running in the first place and that he damn well deserved it. She was right, so Percy decided to distract her with some rehearsing. Half-way through, Athena Chase interrupted them with a stern look, reminding them that class had started five minutes ago and that they were interrupting.

"Think we can go and kidnap Annabeth and Reyna during lunch to go over the big show-down again?", inquired Piper softly. "I don't know about you, but I'm damn nervous about that scene."

Percy nodded sharply before Missus Chase glared at them again.

/break\

By the time lunch rolled around, Percy, Piper, Rachel, Malcolm, Chris, Leo, Frank, Grover and Juniper made their way to the lunch table already hogged by their friends. Percy decided to squeeze in between Reyna and Nico, not that either minded. Reyna just scooted closer to her girlfriend, until Annabeth was half sitting on her lap. She was fully seated on Reyna's lap by the time Piper decided to sit down on their other side, pushing some too. Rachel, Frank and Leo sat down opposite them, Frank and Leo taking the seats on either side of Hazel, each kissing one of her cheeks and earning a strawberry from her lunch in return. Malcolm and Chris sat down with the seniors and with their respective girlfriends – Katie and Clarisse sitting between Silena and Luke, who had their boyfriends on their other sides. The overall atmosphere was nice, there was a lot of laughter and aside from Reyna and Annabeth, who used this opportunity of having Percy next to them to hug him, the others seemingly hadn't noticed him just yet. He glanced to Nico and Jason next to him, curious and maybe a bit nervous. Jason, who was very busy ravishing Nico's lunch, offered him a half-encouraging, half-disgusting (because his mouth was full) smile.

"Guys. Do you... think I could get your attention for a moment?", asked Percy a bit louder.

The seniors on the next table turned toward them and it took Charles Beckendorf to keep Silena from jumping him in that instant, so happy to finally see him again. Luke and Thalia looked curiously at each other before they re-focused on Percy, just like the rest of their friends did. Everyone from their neighborhood had been part of the search for him, after all.

"I'm... sorry I worried you all", announced Percy, biting his lower lip. "I know some of you think I ran because of that... prank." His eyes found Connor's and the trickster awkwardly shifted, half-hiding behind his older brother Travis. "It wasn't because of the alcohol. It was because of something I did afterward. I was... confused about my feelings and felt out of place, so I ran. I was wrong. Because I hurt all of you and because I could have saved myself some heartache if I had just... talked things out from the beginning. So... uh... we talked things out and now... Jason and Nico and I are... uh... well... dating. That's why I ran, because I'm in love with them and I thought it was unrequited. I didn't want to ruin their relationship. Now... I'm part of it, I guess."

This time, not even Beckendorf was strong enough to hold Silena back. The head-cheerleader jumped off her seat and hugged him to her chest, whirling him around with a strength he had not known she possessed. He blushed a bit as he was put down again and saw the looks on his friends' faces. Octavian stared at him with an 'Are you kidding me? All the fuss because of that?' look of annoyance, others varied between fondness, happiness relief. Taking a shaking breath, Percy felt somehow validated by having his friends not bothered by his relationship. Then again, they had accepted Frank, Leo and Hazel even before Percy had been around too.

"That. Is. So. Dis-gus-ting."

Cue in Drew Tanaka. Percy, who had just sat down again, holding Jason's hand over Nico's lap and getting a kiss on the cheek from Nico, both in a way of saying that they were proud of him, turned his head enough to see the completely mortified cheerleader standing in front of them.

"Tanaka, shove it", growled Luke, a warning evident in his voice.

"Yes. If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything", advised Silena sharply.

"Ah, I wouldn't mind tearing some of her extensions out, so let her talk", objected Clarisse.

"Guys", interrupted Percy and turned to smile at his upperclassmen gratefully. "It's okay."

"Percy", whispered Nico into his ear. "It's not okay. Really not. And I second Clarisse's idea."

"No, seriously. It's fine", disagreed Percy and looked up at Drew from where he was sitting, raising his voice some. "I mean, I totally get it. She can't even land one boyfriend and I got _two_ hot boyfriends. I think that alone must be hard enough on her, so just leave her be."

His words were playful and made the others laugh, but something in his eyes was hard and cold, conveying a message that was only for Drew. If she would try to mess this up for him, he would tear out more than just extensions. He wasn't helpless, he'd never been. And he had never let a bully get the better of him. He always fought back. Drew's face turned fifty shades of red and she turned on her heels to storm out of the cafeteria in embarrassment and annoyance.

"You are one of a kind, Perce", grinned Jason and kissed Percy's cheek.

"Don't mind me, just sitting here too", protested Nico as he was nearly shoved off his seat.

"Oh, it is not my fault you're in the way", huffed Jason, nudging the Italian playfully.

Nico too got a kiss from Jason though, making Percy smile a little. He still couldn't fully believe that those two were his. Sadly, he didn't get more time marveling at how amazing they were, because Piper, Reyna, Rachel and Annabeth demanded his attention for more rehearsing.

/break\

"Being in a threesome-relationship is awesome, right?"

Percy fell off his bed in surprise. He had spend the whole evening after dinner going over his lines because he wanted it to be perfect by the time they'd perform next week, so the sudden voice of Leo had nearly given him a heart-attack. The Latino was grinning like a Cheshire cat as he climbed onto Percy's bed and got comfortable. Heaving a sigh, Percy gathered himself and his book again.

"Yeah. I mean... _they_ are awesome", whispered Percy, a blush dusting his cheeks.

"I think you've had enough of that script for now", declared Leo and took Percy's book away. "You need to give your brain a rest, man. How about we go downstairs and you join us with our movie-marathon, mh? My pick – obviously Iron Man. We're already in Afghanistan, so you really don't want to miss any more, Percy. Come on, please. I'll sacrifice a Jason and a Nico for you too?"

Percy heaved a sigh in defeat this time and nodded. It was already late and he had gone over everything about a hundred times already. It was just... he didn't want to fail Rachel. He wanted to give the play she wrote life and do a good job. But Leo was probably right and he shouldn't overwork himself. Besides, cuddling his boyfriends sounded more than rewarding.

"You got him out of his cave!", exclaimed Bianca teasingly.

She was sitting with Thalia, Hercules, Triton and Thanatos on one couch. Percy noted out of the corner of his eyes how displeased Thanatos looked and he briefly wondered if the oldest di Angelo would ever find his courage and talk things out with Triton. At the same time, Percy noted that Triton and Hercules weren't sitting as close as normally. Not wanting to overthink the situation, Percy decided to just join Jason, Nico, Hazel, Frank and Leo on the other couch.

"No way! Five are already borderline too many on one cou-", wanted Frank to protest.

When Hazel just grabbed Leo and pulled the Latino closer until Hazel and Leo were sitting each on one of Frank's thighs to make room, the Canadian instantly shut up and started grinning like an idiot. Percy laughed to himself as he sat down half on Jason's lap, legs thrown over Nico's.

"How nice of you to join us", pointed Jason out, kissing Percy's temple.

"Mh, Leo is right. I need a break", sighed Percy and snuggled up to the blonde.

"Ah, my poor little actor and future movie-star", teased Nico fondly.

Percy wanted to warn him about no-teasing, but then Nico started massaging his feet and Percy felt himself drift off to heaven. Those _hands_. He loved those hands. Sadly, heaven wasn't meant to keep him, because Leo was very set on talking to Percy throughout the whole movie. Then again, Percy had done the same when they had watched his favorite superhero – Captain America. Figured that Iron Man was Leo's favorite. Percy had to admit, he had a weakness for Iron Man too, but that was more due to Robert Downey Junior. Now that was what Percy would call a night well-spend. Getting a foot-rub from Nico, being fed popcorn by Jason and discussing Marvel with Leo. Hades and Poseidon joined them for the second movie. At that moment, Percy couldn't picture ever living without them. There was no way he'd leave this family again, because this was all he ever wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Percy will confront Thanatos next chapter to give him a little push and there'll be focus on Triton/Thanatos. Also, the Sherlock Holmes play will take place and the whole family joins in to cheerk their little Irene Adler on! ;)


	18. Siblings and Boyfriends

Chapter 18: Siblings and Boyfriends

"Percy, we love you!", screamed Jason, whistling loudly. "You go!"

"This is not a sports-event. Calling out like that is inappropriate, you dork", hissed Nico.

The Italian was blushing in embarrassment on his boyfriend's behalf as about half the school turned to glare at them. Not that Nico had any chance to hide, because he was holding a giant sign that said 'Adler is ours' between himself and Jason. Bianca next to him giggled, holding her own 'Percy – Our Star!' sign up together with Hazel, who was having as much fun as Bianca on their brother's behalf. Jason so didn't mind. He was just totally proud that they got to see Percy perform finally.

When the curtain rose and the actors of the first scene – Mycroft Holmes and Irene Adler – were shown in the setting of a living-room, the dumb grin was wiped off Jason's face. Nico sat as slack-jawed as he did. Rachel was wearing a smart top-hat and the clothing of the eighteenth century, not to be narrowed down any further. And Percy? Percy was wearing the most beautiful dress, dark blue and black velvet, with the emphasis on the butt that was so common during that time, a narrow waist due to a corset, his hair was in curls and a small hat on his head.

"Did... uh... did _you_ know about this?", asked Bianca stunned, blinking slowly.

"I had _no idea_ ", hissed Nico. "We would have done other things with that dress then!"

"Niccoló, I'd rather you not", stated Poseidon sharply from three seats over.

Nico flushed even more than Jason's behavior and Percy's dress had made him blush, slowly sinking down on his chair, eyes fixated on Percy. The boy was amazing. Not just that he looked amazing in his clothes, but also the way he acted. The way he moved and spoke. He was a great actor and he kept Nico's and Jason's full attention. Maybe also because of the dress. Nico was gritting his teeth so hard, Jason thought they'd soon fall out due to that by the time a more than flirtatious scene between Adler and Sherlock happened. Jason knew that Annabeth would do good to keep her distance from Percy for the next few days. A jealous Nico was a _dangerous_ Nico.

/break\

Being part of the piece was an amazing feeling. Percy loved every second of it – sure, at first he had been skeptical about Rachel's decision to 'dress according to character's gender' even though they had cast the opposite gender for each role. But acting was just that. Slipping into a new role, being someone entirely new. After everything he had been through, it was nice to not be Percy Ugliano or even Percy Jackson but instead be the flirtatious and witty Irene Adler. And every member of his family had come to cheer him on, they were holding up ridiculous and embarrassing signs and were whistling and cheering loudly at the end. He got hugged by Bianca and Hazel like he was the best thing since sliced bread and Hades had even brought him flowers, because a real actor deserved flowers on the debut of their first piece. That is, Tyson had the flowers and handed them over to Percy with proud-red cheeks, grinning from ear to ear because his big brother was gonna be a 'really big awesome star'. Triton and Thanatos were more reserved, clapping him on the shoulder and giving him proud looks. Poseidon however was close to tears as he hugged the life out of Percy. This was it. The very first time Poseidon got to be part of a big thing in Percy's life. All the swimming competitions and the sword fighting competitions that he had missed...

The best thing however were Jason and Nico. At first he had been kind of bummed out that even Bianca and Hazel were more hyped on his behalf than his boyfriends, but then he returned to his dress-room – an empty classroom with a yellow paper-star duct-taped to it that read PERCY, but still it was the sentiment that counted – he found his boyfriends there, waiting for him. Or rather, they ambushed him. He was barely through the door as he was pushed against it, wrists captured by strong hands, a mouth firmly kissing him. When he was pulled off the door, he found himself pressed against a firm body. Hands were roaming his body and there were whispers of "So proud of you"s and "You did so great"s and "You're so gorgeous"s. It was like getting showered with love and Percy enjoyed it maybe even more than the play itself.

"How can you be that amazing?", murmured Jason against Percy's neck.

If they planned on praising him after every play, he'd so stick to the drama club. Leaning back against Jason, he bared his neck for Nico to explore and leave a hickey on. Bucking his hips, he found the perfect friction between his and Nico's crotch. It only got better when he felt Jason grinding against his butt. Moaning softly, Percy started rolling his hips to get the best of both worlds. Having two boyfriends truly was the best thing possible.

"Guys, wrap it up in there. We have a dinner-reservation down!"

The sudden and loud knocking at the door nearly startled Percy to death. "C—Coming, Tri."

"I _really_ hope you mean that you're coming out of there", grunted Triton disturbed.

Percy's ears turned dark red as he pushed against Nico's chest. "G—Get off. This was like a total mood-killer anyway. I need to get changed. Fast. For that, I need you two to get off me."

"But I don't wanna", whined Jason, running his hands up and down bare Percy's thighs beneath the dress. "This thing is really handy for groping. Smart clothing."

"If you two horny bastards in there don't get off my little brother right now and are out here in five seconds, I will call our fathers", warned Triton sternly. "Three..."

Percy barely had time to blink and then his boyfriends were gone. Apparently, Triton's threats were to be taken serious. Smiling fondly to himself, Percy started to get changed. As nice as making out with his boys was, he also enjoyed their family dinners. And since tonight was his night, he had gotten to choose the restaurant. By the time he was dressed, someone knocked on his door again.

"Be right there, Tri", called Percy out and grabbed his backpack.

He was only mildly surprised to find Thanatos standing there and not Triton. Ah, what a fitted coincident. For a while now, Percy had been thinking about talking to Thanatos alone. It was just hard, with all their siblings, Thanatos having classes at college and Percy working on the play.

"The others already went ahead", explained Thanatos. "Triton was dragging your... boyfriends by the ears though, so I'm assuming there's a reason you took so long."

"It's not like we were doing anything", huffed Percy and blushed, averting his eyes.

"Of course you weren't", grunted Thanatos with a certain fondness to his voice. "Come."

It was nice, a companionable silence as the two stepbrothers walked to the restaurant. It was a cozy little place right around the corner, so they didn't see the need to take the car. When the restaurant came closer, Percy grinned largely because he saw Triton standing in front of it, arms crossed and quite obviously waiting. As they neared him, they saw the rest of the family through the window. Hades and Poseidon at the head of the table, with an empty seat on Poseidon's side and Hazel on Hades'. Next to Hazel sat Bianca and Thalia. The empty seat was most likely saved for Percy, because next to it sat Nico, followed by Jason. And Tyson was sitting between their fathers.

"There you are. You took forever", grunted Triton with a glare aimed at Percy.

"Sorry", grinned Percy as he was pulled into a hug.

"Whatever", muttered Triton, then lowering his voice. "I'm proud of you, you prat."

"Whatever", chimed Percy impishly. "So, where's your Grace? Since it seems to be bring-your-Grace-to-dinner-day. Did Herakles have better plans?"

There was a pause and Triton glared down at Percy. "We broke up weeks ago."

"You... did", whispered Percy, making it sound like a statement. "So that's why the PDA ceased. I've been wondering about that the past few movie nights. Huh. Why?"

"He... wasn't the biggest fan of what's going on with you", started Triton cautiously. "And no one is allowed to say bad things about my little brother. Not even my boyfriend."

Percy blushed and averted his eyes. He still wasn't really used to others standing up for him and the concept that his big brother would break up with his boyfriend for Percy's sake was... strange.

The three boys went inside and joined their family for dinner. The food was delicious and Percy simply loved that he was the center of attention. Everyone kept praising him for his performance and asked him about the play and how things had felt on the stage and all. Nico's hand was on his knee nearly the whole time, just a chaste caress. It was amazing to bathe in the attention of his family like that. All in all, the evening was totally perfect for Percy. There was just one thing. He noticed that Thanatos kept staring thoughtful at Triton. Since Percy felt as though karma was on his side today, he decided to follow Thanatos to the toilet while they were waiting for dessert. When Percy got out of the cabin, Thanatos was leaning against the wall, staring at him intensely.

"We're not girls, we don't need to go to the bathroom in pairs", grunted Thanatos. "What do you want, Percy? Don't think I didn't notice your stares. They're unnerving."

"Well, then you now know how Tri must be feeling", chimed Percy and washed his hands.

"You're a little pest, Perseus", muttered Thanatos beneath his breath.

"Yeah, I know", grinned Percy cheekily, nudging the older boy. "Oh come on, you're running out of excuses not to ask Triton out. You said you were afraid of the judgment, well, look at me. They apparently still love me and they don't know me as long as they know you two. He's not in a relationship anymore either. Can't you at least... you know, talk to him?"

Thanatos grunted and glared at the younger boy. He loved Triton, but he didn't want to make things uncomfortable for Tri. Now however, he also felt as though Percy wouldn't let him get off the hook. As the two of them walked back to the main room, he caught sight of Triton heading out of the restaurant, his cigarettes in hand. Another grunt escaped Thanatos as Percy elbowed him hard. If that boy wouldn't be so lovable, Thanatos would put him in a headlock. Grumbling to himself, Thanatos followed Triton outside. The oldest Jackson-boy offered his pack to Thanatos, looking up expectantly from beneath his lashes. He had a three-days-beard, his hair a little longer and hanging into his eyes and with the cigarette loosely hanging from his lips, he looked rough.

"I'm sorry about your breakup", noted Thanatos casually as he took the offered cigarette.

"You're not", snorted Triton, arching one eyebrow. "You've hated Herakles right from the start."

"You're right", shrugged Thanatos and followed Triton to the hand rail, overseeing the street beneath. "Why did you break up though? Not just because of Percy, is it?"

"We've been fighting a lot the past months", admitted Triton softly, staring down at the street. "I mean, I like a possessive boyfriend, but he's been going too far. It... it got to the point that I felt suffocated. The part about Percy was just the last thing, you know? The final push I needed to break it off. I just... really didn't like the way he talked about what Percy and Nico have..."

Thanatos nodded in understanding, scooting a little closer. "So you... you're not against Percy's relationship with Nico. I mean, aren't we all brothers in your eyes?"

"We're a _family_. I think there are different ways to define family. Sure, they're unconventional, but if they make each other happy", shrugged Triton, puffing out a ring of smoke. "Who am I to judge?"

"So... you've been single for a couple weeks already then...", drawled Thanatos after a pause.

Huffing slightly and blowing more smoke into the night-air, Triton turned his head to look at Thanatos. "Christ, are you _ever_ going to make a move on me or is it all about dancing around me?"

"W—What?", stammered Thanatos and stared wide-eyed at the agitated green-eyed beauty.

"You've been admiring me from afar ever since I moved in. I've been waiting for you to hit on me for months, but you never really did _anything_ , so when Herakles asked me out, I agreed. I thought maybe you'd get jealous enough to be honest", explained Triton, arching one eyebrow. "But you never did. And... honestly, I've been standing there and waiting for you to gather your wits for years now, I'm tired of it. If Percy can have Nico after such a short time, I think maybe I should... If I want you, I should stop waiting for you and act on it. So... do you just enjoy the view, or are you serious about your intentions? Because... well, I liked Herakles alright, but I think you and I... We could be better. Do you... want me? Or not? Just _once_ , tell me how it-"

Triton grunted as he was turned around, strong hands on his hips as he was pressed against the rail and found harsh lips upon his own. The hands on his hips tightened, thumbs rubbing circles on his hipbones, causing him to moan softly into this kiss. So this was what kissing Thanatos felt like. He liked it. A lot. Slinging his arms around Thanatos' neck, he pulled the dark-skinned man closer.

"You knew the whole time", whispered Thanatos against Triton's lips.

"You were not exactly inconspicuous in your behavior", snorted Triton unimpressed. "And I am not exactly a complete idiot, you jerk. I just figured you'd come to me when you were ready, but even my patience isn't without limits, Than. So. You and I. Together?"

"Together", murmured Thanatos back, placing a soft, short kiss on Triton's lips.

"Good lord, this family it getting more and more complicated by the minute."

The two young men bolted apart and stared wide-eyed at a slightly exhausted Hades. Both shifted nervously as the lawyer approached them, unsure what to expect from Hades now. What they hadn't expected was for Hades to snatch one of Triton's cigarettes, light it and take a deep drag.

"Since... when do you smoke, papà?", asked Thanatos slowly.

"Since I was in high school. I stopped, for Poseidon's sake. But every now and then, I sneak out to smoke a cigarette", grunted Hades. "Particularly when I'm having a tough day. You don't rattle me out, I won't rattle you out to him. Because something tells me he doesn't know yet."

"Yeah... it... kinda just happened five minutes ago", muttered Triton embarrassed.

"I'm a very tolerable man, but don't expect too much from me at once", sighed Hades. "Give me some time to digest, yes? And tell your dad yourself, please."

"So... we... I mean... We're cool, yes?", whispered Triton, frowning a little.

"The way I see it, I can hardly forbid you what I allowed Nico and Percy", pointed Hades out, raising both his eyebrows and regarding them. "Besides, you're both grown men. It's your decision what you want to do with your lives, my boys. I just want you to be happy."

Triton grinned broadly, burying his face in Thanatos' chest. Thanatos smiled gratefully at Hades, laying his arms around Triton's waist to pull him closer, enjoying the warmth and the sea-scent.

/break\

"And what do you think _you're_ doing?"

Hades looked up as though he had just tried to steal the Christmas-cookies (again). That was normally the occasion where he earned that particular tone of voice. And Poseidon was also spotting that disapproving glare. What in the world had he done wrong and how did he fix it again? Straightening his back, he slowly let go of the blanket he had been lifting up to crawl beneath.

"I'm sorry, but... what's the matter, love?", asked Hades cautiously.

"Oh, don't play dumb", chided Poseidon and proceeded to climb into bed. "You're sleeping on the couch. Or do you _truly_ believe that I don't know when you break your promise and _smoke_? You know the rules, Hades Pluto di Angelo. When you break a promise, you sleep on the couch."

"...Right, my love", nodded Hades meekly and gathered his pillow up in his arms.

If there was one person on this entire planet that Hades didn't want to anger, it was Poseidon. That man's rage was vengeful like the sea during the worst of storms. It was entirely better to just obediently pay for his mistakes and pray for forgiveness. Also, buy Poseidon something nice. Maybe another dolphin. Not that Poseidon kept them as pets, but Hades donated money to marine animals in need – like dolphins who had gotten caught in tuna nets and such – whenever he screwed up. Worked better on Poseidon than jewels or chocolate. Heaving a sigh, Hades left their bedroom.

"What did you do _this tim_ e?", asked Nico in a teasing voice as Hades passed them.

"Don't test me, boy", warned Hades with his darkest glare.

"Huh?", asked Percy, looking concerned. "W—What's wrong? Did you and dad... have a fight...?"

Hades' eyes softened as he looked at Percy. It had been years since Hades and Poseidon had last truly fought. It were silly, little matters and tomorrow – after donating to dolphins and apologizing – everything would be alright again. Not that Percy knew that. He hadn't seen _any_ kind of outfall between his fathers since moving in. Of course the poor thing would worry.

"It's alright, Percy", promised Hades and ruffled Percy's hair. "I promised your dad I'd stop smoking. Occasionally, I break that promise. Poseidon punishes me with the couch. But it's okay, nothing serious. Come tomorrow, he'll forgive me again."

"...Okay", nodded Percy after a moment of searching Hades' face for a lie.

"Man, I am so glad to have _you_ ", grinned Nico and wrapped one arm around Percy's shoulders as Hades walked past them. "You're so sweet, you'd never do such an awful thing."

"...Yeah, try pulling such a stunt _once_ and you'd beg for the couch", grunted Percy, raising one eyebrow. "Anyway, I love you guys, but I'll be heading to bed now. That play was tiring..."

"Sleep well, babe", grinned Jason and kissed Percy's cheek.

But all that Nico could do was stare after Percy with large eyes. "I have never been that glad that I didn't pick up the stereotypical bad boy habit of smoking..."

"I think it was a little less about the smoking and more about the lying", chuckled Jason.

"It was about both of them", called Percy out as he rounded the corner into his room.

Jason snickered, laying one arm around Nico's shoulders. It was fun to rile the Italian up and Percy seemed to be the best in that. Pecking Nico's cheek, he intertwined their fingers. He had a brilliant plan as to what he wanted to do with the rest of the evening.

"Nico! Get your butt down here and help!", called Bianca out loudly.

Jason pouted as Nico kissed him briefly before heading downstairs. Bianca was such a cockblocker. Sometimes, it was as though the older girl could sense when Jason wanted something from his boyfriend. A sly smirk slid onto his lips as he sneaked toward Percy's bedroom. Good thing he now had two boyfriends then. Tip-toeing down the hall, he opened Percy's door enough to slip in. He had to bite his lips when he saw the adorableness that was Percy. Cautiously placing his backpack on the ground, Jason got something out of it and continued his way to Percy's bed.

"Not now, Ty, I'm tired...", groaned Percy, voice muffled by the pillow.

He must have face-planted onto the bed, sprawled out like he had been knocked unconscious. Walking up to Percy, Jason sat down next to the half-asleep boy, tenderly caressing the messy hair. Some of the curls from the play were still in place, making the hair look even wilder than normally.

"Not Ty", whispered Jason. "I know you said you want to sleep, but I still got a present for you. It's kinda cheesy so I didn't want to give it to you earlier. I would never live Thalia's teasing down."

That got Percy's attention and even half-asleep, he managed to roll onto his side and crack one eye open to stare at Jason. He did love getting presents. And if it was cheesy, that really made him curious. He cooed softly when he saw what Jason was holding in his hands, making grabby-motions for it. Jason was blushing so furiously in embarrassment as he handed it over. He ran his fingers through his hair while Percy sat up and cuddled the item to his chest.

"It's so fluffy!", yelped Percy. "But... why?"

"Well, because... you're our little star now, right? But I thought this fit better than a regular star, because you like the ocean and all, right?", mumbled Jason awkwardly.

He held the plush sea-star up to properly look at it again. It was fluffy and it had a smiley-face stitched on, it was large enough to be used as a pillow too and it was azure-blue. Hugging it again, Percy offered Jason the largest grin possible. Jason's cheeks were practically glowing red at that. It was so easy to make Percy happy. This was really just a cheap toy, but the smile on Percy's smile was so incredibly large and happy. Jason yelped as he fell over to the side at the force of Percy hugging and kissing him all of a sudden. It was _really_ way too easy to make Percy happy.

"You are _so_ sweet, Jay", smiled Percy as he snuggled up to Jason. "Thank you. Cuddles?"

"Cuddles", confirmed Jason happily, wrapping his arms around Percy's waist.

They settled down comfortably, with Percy curled together on Jason's chest, hugging the sea-star tightly, while Jason was holding him tightly, nose buried in Percy's hair. Percy was out like a candle in the shortest time. Not that Jason minded. Percy had said he was tired, after all. And Jason totally believed that. Two and a half hours of acting, on that hot stage and after the last night where he had basically just been a nervous wreck, Jason was more than willing to give Percy some rest. Cradling Percy to his chest, Jason closed his own eyes. Just for a little bit...

/break\

Nico was annoyed beyond measure. Bianca took him away from his Jason, just to deal with all the maniacs. Aka their friends. An indifferent Alabaster was hanging off Ethan's arm, glaring at him, Charles and Silena, Clarisse and Chris, Octavian and Luke, Will and Jake, Annabeth And Reyna, Grover and Juniper, the Stolls, Thalia, Lou, Rachel and Piper. There had also been Frank and Leo – but Hazel had already stolen them. All others were grinning from ear to ear and demanded Percy for the after-party (well, they also demanded for Nico, Bianca and Jason to join them). Nico had politely told them to go and fuck off because Percy had gone to bed early. Alabaster and Lou had nearly dragged him out forcefully. He understood that they all wanted to celebrate together some, but Nico knew that celebrating tonight meant alcohol for them and Nico wasn't quite ready to go to such a thing with Percy – besides, he had certain plans about cuddling for tonight.

"Where's my Percy?", chimed Leo as he suddenly popped up next to Nico.

The Italian yelped started and turned to glare at Leo, who was sticking his head out of Hazel's room. That boy had a creepy timing. Nico glowered at the Latino's unwavering smile and continued his way. Sadly, so did Leo. Heaving a long-suffering sigh, Nico opened the door to Percy's bedroom.

"Aw, so no Percy cuddles for me", pouted Leo and wiggled his nose. "Jason took them all..."

Nico grunted and nodded. Jason and Percy were curled together in a tangle of limbs. They were just so adorable together. When Leo tried to push past Nico, Nico shoved back and closed the door behind himself. He could hear Leo whine and protest from the other side of the door.

"Go. Away", ordered Nico sternly. "Shoo. Where's my sister when I need her, really?"

"Fine, fine", huffed Leo with a pout. "But you two have to hand him over in the morning!"

Nico snorted amused and shook his head. When he could hear the tapping of Leo's feet leading away from the room, Nico walked over to the bed. He frowned curiously when he saw Percy clutching a blue plush star to his chest. Smiling amused, he brushed Percy's hair out of his face before laying down behind Percy and wrapping his arms around the other boy's waist. Percy hummed in his sleep as he snuggled up to his boyfriends on either side of him, completely happy.

/break\

Triton blushed, eyes darting from left to right as he made his way down the hall in the middle of the night. He could hear Hades snore in the living room. Everyone else was already asleep. Even though they were asleep, he kept quiet as he reached his destination, spotting the figure on the bed.

"Why are you still awake, Tri?", asked a dark and amused voice.

"I... uh...", grunted Triton and cleared his throat. "I'd like to... just lay together some? Maybe?"

Thanatos stared surprised and wide-eyed, but he still nodded wildly. How could he _ever_ say no to that? And after dinner, they hadn't exactly gotten any time to talk or anything again either. He smiled at how perfect Triton's body curved against his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will give you how Triton's and Thanatos' relationship will develope as well as a lot of other fluff and some sadness.


	19. A Family Like No Other

Chapter 19: A Family Like No Other

It was a strange kind of feeling in Percy's stomach. Everyone was so ecstatic, so motivated. They were planning the party of the century – or so Leo said. The Jackson di Angelos weren't the only ones organizing this party. Basically everyone on Myosotis Lane participated in the planning, organizing what was supposed to be the greatest thing this street had ever seen.

It was for Percy and Percy knew, deep down, that he should be grateful and happy. He wasn't. He wasn't happy, or cheerful or even grateful to them. And that was the truly unsettling feeling.

"Catch!", called a sudden voice.

Thanks to Percy's reflexes, he actually managed to catch the helmet. He frowned confused before lifting his gaze to look at his blonde lover. Jason grinned broadly, winking at him. It wasn't something personal, but Percy really wasn't in the mood for all the grinning, happy and eager faces at the moment. He had been hiding out here in the stables for the past few days, since this whole mania had started. He grew more doubtful when an equally grinning Nico also entered.

"Go get up, or we won't make it before nightfall", ordered Nico.

"I'm not in the mood to go somewhere", sighed Percy and put the helmet down.

He turned more toward Blackjack, who whined as though he understood why Percy was feeling the way he did. A pained smile spread over his lips as he caressed the black stallion. Nico and Jason exchanged a concerned look before they approached Percy. While Jason picked the helmet back up, Nico knelt down next to Percy, grasping his chin and tilting his head up.

"You didn't even ask where we want to go", whispered the Italian softly.

Percy felt a pang of guilt. It wasn't his boyfriends' fault that he was feeling so down and unmotivated. He shouldn't let them suffer his mood. All of this made him feel so ungrateful. Everyone was doing their best to throw this amazing party for his sake and all he did was hide from everyone and mope all alone. After everything they all had done for him. He sighed softly.

"Where do you want to go?", asked Percy softly, knowing he'd still decline.

"Barryville", replied Nico casually as he stood again.

Percy's eyes widened as his head snapped over to his boyfriends. They were still smiling, but now that he looked at them a little closer, he noticed that their smiles were tainted too. Saddened.

"If you really think we don't know what day it is today, you must think us to be awful boyfriends", stated Jason, trying to sound casual and failing miserably. "We talked to Hades and Poseidon about it. Well, the whole family did, actually. We didn't want to crowd you, figured you'd want to be alone. But... we also don't want to leave you on your own. You shouldn't be alone today. So... will you allow us to be with you today and to go with you?"

"If you wish to go alone, we'll also respect that, though papà insists that you take a taxi, at the very least. He doesn't want you driving yourself, not in the state you're in", pointed Nico out.

"I don't deserve you", whispered Percy in slight awe as he stood and took the helmet.

"You deserve so much more", huffed Nico and kissed Percy's temple before fastening the helmet properly and pull Percy along. "Come now. Let's go and visit your mother."

/break\

When they reached Barryville, Nico headed straight to the graveyard. They stopped at the flower shop to buy the most beautiful bouquet before they continued to Sally's grave. Nico and Jason stayed back some to allow Percy more privacy. Today was the first anniversary of her death and as much as they all were looking forward to celebrating one year of Percy staying with them and being a Jackson, they knew that the sad events of Sally's death overshadowed this joy. Perhaps that was also why everyone was burying themselves so deeply in the preparations for the celebration. They had no idea how to comfort Percy, how to help him through these days.

"Hey, mom", whispered Percy softly as he sat down in front of the gravestone, tracing his mother's name as tears filled his eyes. "I miss you... I miss y—you so much, mom..."

He started sobbing and hung his head, so Nico and Jason decided to approach their boyfriend after all. They sat down on either side of Percy, resting their hands on his thighs and head, caressing them soothingly. They were huddled closely, trying to comfort their lover.

"Hello, ma'am", said Jason firmly, looking at the gravestone. "It's a shame we never got to meet in person, though... me and Nico, we're damn grateful for having met your son. We love him very much, you know? I'm sure you're watching over him from above, but... be assured that Nick and I, we'll be watching over Percy from here. We'll protect him now that you can't anymore."

Percy turned to look at Jason with teary eyes and leaned against his chest. How did he have those amazing boyfriends, who knew exactly what Percy needed, both in deeds and words? Nico wrapped his arms around Percy's waist from behind, holding onto him tightly and securely.

/break\

They spend three hours at the graveyard, before Percy had completely exhausted himself crying and telling his mother everything that had happened in the past year. Nico contemplated driving them right back, but just because Percy had stopped crying didn't mean he was stable enough just yet. That and neither boy had eaten anything today. So before, they went to the local diner, got food and left to go to the old Linwood Farm to eat. There was a tinted smile on Percy's face as they climbed onto the barn, settling down on the hay to eat. The view was still as amazing as it had been a year ago, when they had last been here. Everything was dirtier and more fallen apart now, but that it had already been before. An unused farm that laid bare for so long tended to waste away.

"What do you wanna do with this?", asked Jason, motioning out the window and to the farm. "I mean, a year ago, you said you'd want to move here one day. You still got nearly two years of school to finish and then? College? I'm pretty sure Hades and Poseidon would pay for an apartment close to any college in the country. What? Don't look at me like that."

"He's not wrong", shrugged Nico, treading his fingers through Percy's hair. "You're not dumb. You could do the things you dreamed of. Marine biology was it, wasn't it?"

"I don't know", muttered Percy, staring out the window. "I'm not exactly a scholar. I'm not... I don't like school. Or learning. I'm... I'm more of a guy who works with his hands, you know? I still want this, the farm. I'll finish school and maybe I should go to college, get the proper degree so I... uh, know what do to with the farm. And then we could rebuild it."

"We?", echoed Jason curiously.

"I—If you'd want, only", said Percy, eyes darting between Jason and Nico. "I mean, the farm isn't that far from New York. Okay, it's quite the drive, but when Nico joins the 'family business', I think the drive would be bearable, right? And... uh... actually, I have no idea what you want to do after school, Jay. You never talk about it at all. I just... I like to entertain this idea in my head."

Nico frowned as he surveyed the area. The farm was big, beautiful too. It would take a lot of work to renovate the house and barn, to get the farm back to being functional, but in a way Nico saw a certain appeal in that. They could make this theirs, have free reign. Hades and Poseidon surely would support them, give them the means to turn this into the most beautiful house possible to start their life in. Percy, who loved horses so much, could have more than just Blackjack here. Their family could come over visit regularly – it would do them good to get out of the big city some times too. It was easy to picture, really. Living here, in this peaceful little place.

"I have no idea what I'm gonna do with my life", shrugged Jason with a frown. "Tried to put thinking about it off for as long as possible, I guess. But yeah, this farm is kinda neat. Mh... I could get that farming degree too and we could take care of it together while Nico goes off to work in his fancy suit? I've always been more on the practical side of things too, I guess..."

Percy smiled slightly as he looked at his boyfriends. This was good. Talking about something aside from death and the past. A future. It was true, Percy did like to entertain this in his mind. Rebuilding the farm his grandparents and great-uncle had owned, living here in the peaceful nature, with animals around, growing the things they'd eat themselves and selling it on the market, waiting for Nico to return home from work while working with Jason in the fields. Maybe even have a couple of tiny feet running around the house. The farm house was rather large, after all. And Barryville was a good place to raise children. He may not have gotten the chance to grow up here, but maybe, ten or so years from now, who knew what the future held for them all.

/break\

"Is everything ready in the living room?", asked Leo loudly from the kitchen.

"Everything's perfect. All that's missing are Percy, Jason and Nico", called Hazel back.

Poseidon, upon hearing that, entered the living room to see for himself. Fluffy pillows and blankets all over the place, a stack of _Doctor Who_ DVDs next to the television, popcorn and Percy's favorite foods at the ready. As much as they were looking forward to the celebration of having Percy in their family for a year now, as much did they know that today, all he needed was comfort. Hades grunted slightly to gain his lover's attention. Offering a pained smile, Poseidon walked over to the lawyer and nestled on his lap, head resting on Hades' shoulder. Bianca next to them looked up from her book and offered her fathers a small smile. Tyson was sprawled out on another couch, apparently waiting impatiently for his big brothers. Leo and Frank entered, carrying large bowls with more popcorn in before joining Hazel on the third couch.

"Someone mind getting your big brothers?", sighed Hades, looking around disapprovingly.

Bianca put her book down and left the room without a word. A playful smile was playing on her lips as she knocked on Triton's door and then entered. Both her brothers yelped as they dove apart and stared at her wide-eyed. Triton hastily straightened his shirt and tried to push Thanatos further away.

"I wish Nico would be as considerate about his PDA", chuckled Bia amused. "Now come on, Jason texted that they'll be here in five minutes. Everyone else is gathered downstairs."

Triton straightened his clothes once more and stood, taking Thanatos' hand and followed Bianca out of the room. Thanatos was staring down at their joined hands like it was the most amazing thing possible. Bianca found that quite endearing. By the time they reached the living room, they saw Percy, Jason and Nico entering the house. Percy sill looked subdued, his eyes red and puffy from crying, but he also looked more at ease. A sad smile graced Bianca's lips.

"Hey, guys. You're right in time", said Bianca, motioning for them to join.

"I'm not...", started Percy, frowning displeased.

"In the mood, we thought so. Look, we just... We don't want you to talk or smile or do _anything_ , we just want to be with you and show you our... support", interrupted Bianca, frowning herself.

"Come on, just cuddling on the couch, mh?", whispered Nico, one arm around Percy's waist.

"...Will there be hot chocolate?", asked Percy softly.

"Of course there'll be hot chocolate", answered Triton and changed directions toward the kitchen.

"...With marshmallows?", wanted Percy to know, looking hopeful.

"Anything for you, Perce", murmured Thanatos and ruffled his hair.

With Jason and Nico at his sides, Percy cautiously entered the living room. Their whole family plus Frank and Leo were present, there were tons of comfort-food piled up on the table, cuddly blankets and pillows everywhere and stashes of DVDs awaiting his judgment. It drove tears into his eyes.

"Not crying, big brother! We wanna make you happy", declared Tyson upset.

"I—I know, that's... that's why I'm crying", mumbled Percy, rubbing frantically at his eyes. "I'm... I'm so _so_ sad that my mother is gone, but at the same time I'm so very grateful that I got to meet all of you, that I can be a part of this family... I... I love you guys a lot. Thank you, for everything."

"Enough mush, sit down", ordered Triton with a fond smile, carrying a tray with hot chocolate.

Percy found himself stuck between his lovers on a couch that was normally large enough to host five people, but with all the pillows and blankets, it was a tight fit for the three of them. Surrounded by fluffy blankets and the warmth of his boyfriends, he started to slowly feel at ease. Triton handed him a mug with hot chocolate and Percy offered him a grateful smile.

"Now, what do you wanna watch?", inquired Leo eagerly.

"Can we start with... with _Empty Child_ ", suggested Percy softly. "I want something where... just this once, everybody lives... And it has Captain Jack. Captain Jack makes everything better."

"Nightmares for Leo it is", declared Leo and made a face.

"Oh, you're such a wimp", snickered Jason teasingly.

Percy wasn't even really paying attention to _Doctor Who_ , his eyes kept shifting between his family. The feelings inside his chest just wouldn't settle. He was devastated to think of his mother's kind smile and big heart, that he had lost this forever, but then he felt this warmth spread through his whole being when he looked around and saw all those people who loved him now, who he would have never met if not for his mother's early death. He felt as though he shouldn't be that grateful for that, like it was wrong, as though it meant he was glad his mother was gone, but he _wasn't_.

When _The Doctor Dances_ ended and they took a much needed toilet-break (Leo was quite strict when it came to movie-nights. There were no breaks during the watching), Percy took the chance to go outside and get some fresh air. His heart still felt so heavy.

"There's no reason to feel guilty, Percy."

Percy stiffened slightly and turned to face Hades. The man wasn't looking at him though, he was staring ahead at the roses outside. He came to stand next to Percy. Percy frowned slightly.

"I don't know what you mean", muttered the teenager in denial.

"You're sad that your mother died and happy to be with us. You feel torn. It's really not that hard to guess, Percy", stated Hades simply, voice soft. "And there is no reason to be guilty. You can miss your mother and still be grateful to be with us. What would have been the alternative? Living with this bastard? Being on the streets? You have a right to be grateful that your life turned out for the better, without it being a blemish to your mother's memories."

"...Are you... uh... sure?", asked Percy, not sounding the least bit confident.

Hades sighed and laid one arm around Percy's shoulders, pulling him close. "Yes. Because it doesn't mean you're grateful she died. You're just grateful that, even though you lost that one support you had, you are not alone anymore. You can't change the past, regardless of how much you wish your mother would still be with you. All you can do is make the best of what you have. And that you did, so you have every right to enjoy the life you've build. You can't cling onto the past forever, that's not living. You have to move on. I'm sure it's what your mother would have wanted too, my boy."

"Thank you, papà", mumbled Percy and buried his face in Hades' chest.

His shoulders shook as he started to cry again. Hades just held him close until he calmed down.

/break\

Percy awoke with a start when he was placed on a bed. Blinking slowly, he looked around to find himself in his bed. Nico was smiling down at him, brushing his hair out of his face with a tender touch. Percy tilted his head, yawning widely. The last thing he remembered was _The Day of the Doctor_ , they were in the middle of it, he was pretty sure of. So what was he doing here?

"You fell asleep. Drooled all over my lap", teased Jason as he shrugged out of his shirt. "So we decided to bring you to bed. You've had a long day, Perce. Time to sleep."

"And... uh... what are you doing?", asked Percy illegible.

"We're staying with you tonight", declared Nico, pushing his jeans down.

"I don't think dad and papà would be fans of that", pointed Percy out.

Just because they allowed Percy and Nico a relationship, they still didn't allow them to share a bed. Same went for Thanatos and Triton. After all, Frank and Leo weren't allowed to stay over either. And Percy and the others were fine with that. It was already amazing enough that neither of the men had anything against the unorthodox relationships, so obeying their rules was only fair.

"They allowed it. For tonight. I think papà and dad know that sex is the last thing on either of our minds tonight", whispered Nico and climbed into the bed. "It's just about comfort and cuddles."

Percy smiled gratefully as he settled in the bed. He rested his head on Nico's chest, with Jason's arms around his chest, breath ghosting over Percy's neck. Yes, sex really was the last thing on his mind. He just wanted to feel... loved. Like he belonged here. Just in the arms of those two.

"I love you so much", whispered Percy and closed his eyes. "Thank you... for loving me..."

Jason and Nico exchanged a soft look over their lover's head.

/break\

The anniversary of his mother's death had been just right. He had the chance to grief and cry, to be comforted and to feel at home. A few days later, as the celebration for his one year stay in Myosotis Lane rolled around, he was in a far more motivated mood. The idea of celebrating with all his friends, family and the neighbors sounded far more appealing. It was a great barbeque, reminding him of the first time he had met the neighborhood. Hades, Ares and Hephaestus were in charge of the barbeque. Everyone had brought various sorts of flesh, vegetables, cheeses and sausages to put on the barbeques. The three men turned it into a playful fight over who would make the best.

Demeter had made five different salads, while her wife Hestia had self-made bread with her, Hecate and her husband Howard had brought various sauces, always good at brewing up something delicious. Artemis and Apollo brought the best cuts from their last hunting-trip. Tristan and his wife Aphrodite had various desserts – albeit all were bought and not homemade. The Chases and Hermes also brought more salads, though not green ones but rather potato salad, noodle salad, sausage salad, for which the teenagers were rather grateful, because only greens weren't fun either.

Tyson and Ella were chasing Mrs. O'Leary, Zerberus, Argentum and Aurum through the yard, laughing and giggling. Percy liked watching them, they were so peaceful and adorable.

"Are you going to join us in here, or will you just stand there and stare into the distance, seaweed brain?", called Annabeth out from where she sat on her girlfriend's shoulders.

Reyna underneath her was facing Malcolm, who had his girlfriend Katie on his own shoulders. After waving at Percy, Annabeth found herself thrown off by Katie, who then gave a victorious yelp. Annabeth was complaining about cheating as she tried to sort her wet hair out of her face. The picture made Percy grin largely. Taking a few steps back, he started running toward the planks that Poseidon sometimes used to sit on to fish in the small pond. Yelling loudly, Percy splashed into the water, gaining the attention of most attendants of the party. They chuckled or laughed at his antics.

"You look way better than last week", pointed Rachel out with a smile as Percy resurfaced.

"Mh, I feel... better. Lighter", replied Percy with a smile of his own.

"That's good. It suits you", complimented the redhead, brushing his hair back.

"Yeah. You're not the brooding kind. Leave that to your boyfriend", agreed Clarisse with a grunt.

"I'm not broody... Oh, you mean Nico. Then yes", interjected Jason.

Nico rolled his eyes and dunked his blonde. Percy laughed as he watched his two lovers fight. The little quarrel soon turned into a rather heated make-out-session. That, Percy loved even more to watch. It was odd, he would have thought that such a thing should make him jealous, but he supposed Leo was right about how a threesome-relationship worked. It only worked with trust. You needed to be willing to also let the other two parties spend time on their own, just like you'd get alone-time with each of them. Sitting on each other at all times wasn't a solution.

"Percy! Join us for a game of water-ball!", ordered Luke loudly. "You, me and Reyna against Annabeth, Tavy and Rachel, eh? Let's show those book-worms how it's done!"

"Why? I mean, those teams do sound unfair", pointed Percy out, frowning.

"It's a little bet", drawled Octavian slowly. "When my team wins, Luke will let me try something... ah, new, in bed. So if you bail out, our bet falls flat. That would be a shame, really."

Raising one eyebrow, Percy turned toward Luke, who just shrugged. "When we win, Tavy will let me top for the first time. Don't stare like that, it's not like he forbids me or anything, he's just... very distracting when we're in bed and... it always just... happens. I'm aware he's doing it on purpose though. So, when we win this, he will willingly submit, none of his manipulative games."

"And what is it you'd have to do? I demand details if I have to help", ordered Percy.

Luke blushed and leaned in, whispering something into Percy's ears that also made Percy blush just as much. He stared at Octavian with wide, scandalized eyes, but the blonde only smirked like a shark. Percy hastily fetched a ball, determined to save Luke's virtue.

The game lasted for half an hour, most of their friends watching the spectacle with amusement. It only ended when their parents called them, with quite irritation, that food would be ready. Of course they interrupted when it was a tie. With loads and loads of food on his plate, Percy searched for a seat. Everything was rather crowded, there were dozens of people after all.

"Percy! Come here!", called Silena out eagerly.

He smiled broadly as he approached his friend and sat down between Silena and Clarisse. He had seen Nico sitting with Alabaster, Ethan and Lou, while Jason had been with Thalia, Reyna and Hylla. Like he said, they didn't have to be together always, as long as they were together when it mattered. Nodding at his friends, he started to stuff his face with the deliciousness.

"So... you're going to turn Jason into a farmer?", started Clarisse amused.

"Huh?", grunted Percy between bites.

"Well, Jason told Thalia, who told Hylla, who then told me", explained Clarisse.

"Is that true?", inquired Silena, looking troubled. "That would... not involve plaid, right? Because I don't think we could stay friends if you'd start wearing plaid, Percy."

He snorted and shook his head. "No. It's supposed to involve good food that we'd grow ourselves, hard work that we'd put into what we achieve and, well, I don't know what else, I guess."

"What do you want it to involve?", asked Beckendorf curiously.

"A... happy ending", whispered Percy with a wistful expression. "A happy ending for us all."

"That sounds like a wonderful thing, honey", smiled Silena and patted his cheek.

"So... did anyone finish that English assignment already?", threw Grover into the round.

"...Really?", snorted Percy amused. "We had like three weeks time and you haven't done it?"

"Oh, like you have", huffed Grover and stuck his tongue out at his friend.

"Actually I have. I was paired up with Rachel", grinned Percy victoriously. "You?"

"Well, I was paired up with Juni and we... kinda didn't get much studying done", admitted Grover.

"I will help you later", sighed Malcolm and shook his head in a chiding manner.

"You're a life-savior, man", grinned Grover, patting the blonde's back gratefully. "Thanks."

Percy laughed as he watched his friends. Hades was right. Being grateful for how his life had turned out wasn't a bad thing, he had a right to do so. Just like he had a right to dream big. One day, the Linwood Farm would shine again and he would have Jason and Nico with him and together, they would get the happily ever after that they all deserved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is the last! It will be a fast-forward into the future of our threesome on the Linwood Farm! ;)


	20. The Graceful Jackson di Angelo Family

Chapter 20: The Graceful Jackson di Angelo Family

Over the years of his high school and college career, Percy had gotten to see Barryville wither away. The generation of his grandparents had mostly passed and the generation of his mother was slowly retiring, some moving to Florida for this purpose. And even though some of their kids took over the old establishments, many had moved away to big cities to attend college and start careers. In his early twenties, Percy had feared for it to turn into a ghost town. A bit frantic and clinging onto his memories, he had set to renovating the old farm with the help of his family and friends.

It took years to get it done; fixing and isolating the house and barn, renovating and furnishing, getting rid of the weed and generally getting the fields running again. Years of teamwork. Whoever had some time to spare, or wanted to get away from the big city life, needed a break from studies, they'd be drawn to the old Linwood Farm, helping out with whatever task was still open.

Some had fallen hard for the life in the countryside. The farm life seemed to be just the thing for Grover and Juniper and when, one summer, one of the farms was for sale because the children had moved away to college and the parents couldn't stem it anymore, they hadn't been able to resist. They had moved out to Barryville even before Percy, actually. But they also still had a lot of work to do. The farm came equipped, but there was still a lot to do to make it _theirs_.

Percy and Jason got their agricultural degrees and were more than eager to follow to the countryside. They had worked so hard for this. The old farm seemed to shine in its new beauty, baby-blue and white. Nico was still knee-deep in finishing his education – he wanted to climb the latter in his father's law firm like everybody else. He had never wanted to get any special treatment just because it was his family's firm. So the young lawyer-to-be obediently followed his boyfriends. And he wasn't the only one. Leo had fallen hard for Barryville too and during their time at college, Leo and Percy had grown practically inseparable. Frank was officially a police officer, following his father's and mother's footsteps, but when faced with his lover's large puppy-eyes, he applied for the empty spot as Barryville's sheriff. Hazel had reopened the diner that had been closed two years ago, eager to create a place where people could gather and meet. Well, aside from Dionysus' bar that had been taken over by his three sons Dakota, Castor and Pollux. Leo however reopened the old car shop, because the owner had passed away a few years ago and his sons Christopher and Harley had left Barryville after that. Leo didn't do it alone though, he did it together with his brother Jake.

Jake's boyfriend Will, who had trained to become a vet, found his calling with the farms too, specialized on horses and cows and other larger farm animals. It was calm and he loved his practice.

And with them bringing back the important local shops – the diner, the mechanic, the vet – life seemed to slowly return to Barryville. It was a hard start for them all and the first few years were pure elbow grease, endurance and relying on the friends they had, but it got easier.

It got easier and it got wonderful. Most of their friends were scattered all over the states by now, some had even moved to Europe. With some, they had lost contact altogether, others still called when they came back to New York to visit their family, many wrote cards for birthdays and holidays and then there were those who held facebook and skype contact, like Clarisse or Rachel. It was the point where Percy came to realize which friendships were meant to last.

Jason, Nico and Percy had visited Silena and Beckendorf in Paris two years ago, when Nico had been especially stressed and strained and needed a little get-away. Silena and Beckendorf had opened up a little bed and breakfast for families in Paris. It was romantic, cozy and homey.

Thanatos was by now partner in Hades' firm, soon to be named partner (Hades was anticipating the day _Di Angelo & Son_ would be _Di Angelo & Sons_). He and Triton got married a few years ago.

Bianca was gone – some 'back to the roots' hiking and hunting trip with Thalia, Zoe and Phoebe. It had been going on for two years now, she called or wrote whenever she could, but most the time, the others didn't even know what continent she was on. But when they heard from her, it was always adventurous. Climbing the Himalaya, crossing the Chinese Wall, such things.

With nearly all kids gone, Hades and Poseidon started traveling more together too. Instead of hiring someone to take care of the horses, Percy had offered to take them in. Poseidon regularly came to visit them, if anything it was just one more reason to go to Barryville. And it made Percy happy, that their parents regularly came, because family was still the most important thing for him.

Having lived those last teenage years in this special and loving patchwork family had made Percy want to have that for himself too. Offering children who had as bad a childhood as he himself the chance to be happy and part of a loving family. His begging kitten eyes were incredibly effective and both Jason and Nico understood where he was coming from. So they became foster fathers.

Percy was just finishing up lunch, eyes sweeping over the kitchen, surveying which of his children were there. Marshall, a broad and large dark-skinned boy who was very much on the silent side, was setting the table. He was always helpful and friendly. With him was little Phylicia, the youngest of their bunch. Her long, brown hair was braided and thrown over her shoulder, she was wearing a green summer-dress as she helped Marshall setting the table. She was rather quiet too, but with her it was more shyness, so for her, Marshall was welcomed company.

"Where are your siblings? Lunch is ready", asked Percy, grasping Phyl's cheek and kissing the top of her head. "It's too silent. I don't trust this. Oh, the nervous shifting. I know that."

"Sara and Joe ran off to visit uncle Leo", replied Phyl timidly, shifting a little.

"Trend, Derek and Sam are in the barn, I guess", muttered Marshall as he went to fill all glasses.

"Thank you", chimed Percy and brushed his hands off on his apron. "You, stay here. I'll go."

The two nodded obediently and Percy headed outside. His eyes instantly found Jason, who was currently shirtless and working the field. A picture Percy never tired of. Licking his lips, he whistled loudly, startling Jason. The blonde blushed as he glared at his lover. Blowing Jason a kiss, Percy continued on his way. Out of the seven children they had taken in, those three were a sworn union. Derek, Sam and Trend. It always came down to them. Sure, Derek loved doting on Phyl, because she was that shy little thing and both adored flowers, so they spend a lot of time together in the flower garden. And Sam had Sara, who adored him beyond measure. For Trend it was Marshall, the two boys enjoyed the silence of their library and playing chess (which never failed to freak Percy out, because all their kids were under ten. He had absolutely no concept of chess even at the age of nearly-thirty). When those dynamics first became obvious, Percy became worried about their little Joe. But his worries were for naught. Joe spend as much time with Sara as Sara spend with Sam and when Sara was busy with Sam, Joe liked to visit the car shop and watch Leo work.

"Oi, bambini", called Percy out as he entered the barn. "Where are you three rascals?"

Berta the cow mooed at him as he passed her. Sam had named her. Sam had named most of their animals. Patting her snout, Percy proceeded forward to the stables. Tempest, Scipio, Pegasus, Arion and Rainbow were all in their respective cabins, but Blackjack was laying in the hay, with Sam curled together against his side, cheek resting against Blackjack's ribs. Trend sat on a ball of hay, some of the hay sticking in his blonde hair, indicating that he and Sam had been fighting again. Derek was sitting behind Sam, arms wrapped around his waist, hugging him like a giant teddy.

"Bambini, didn't you hear me calling?", chided Percy with a frown. "Lunch is ready."

"Aw, but I wanted to help you make it, daddy", whined Sam with the most adorable pout possible and peeled himself out of Derek's embrace. "Can I help with dinner, please?"

Percy opened his arms and smiled, waiting for Sam to approach him. It had been hard at first, to not just pull the adorable boy into a hug and cuddle him to death, but Sam had been badly abused – worse than Percy and Percy tried not to think about the horrors Sam had been forced to go through at such a young age – so he hated physical contact with strangers. Even now they let him initiate it. And it had taken months for Sam to take that step, but now those moments when little Sammy willingly approached one of them and would hug him tightly, it was one of the best feelings. He wrapped his little arms around Percy's waist and buried his nose in Percy's stomach, looking up at the adult with large forest-green eyes, innocent and hopeful. It pained Percy a little that Sam still thought he had to earn his stay by helping around the house, cooking and cleaning. He was only seven years old, there was no way Percy would make the little ones do so much work.

"Of course you can help, sweetling", cooed Percy, ruffling Sam's unruly brown hair.

He tried to give the kids the easiest and smallest tasks. Bending down a little, he grasped Sam by the knees and lifted him up. Sam clung onto Percy's neck, face buried in his shoulder. Trend hopped off the hayball and trailed after them, closely followed by Derek who was chatting animatedly. Derek was very energetic. At times an arrogant brat, but only toward those who didn't deserve his love, at least according to Derek himself. Percy found it endearing and loved his sass, Nico on the other hand had a special kind of migraine that he had lovingly named Derek.

"Can we have salad tonight, daddy?", asked Derek when they reached the kitchen. "It's growing so nicely and Philly is so proud of her tomatoes. I think we should have tomatoes."

It was endearing how supportive and loving Derek was toward their youngest. Marshall, Phyl, Jason, Sara and Joe already sat at the table, only waiting on them. Percy frowned curiously. Sara was talking rather loudly, waving her short arms around wildly as she explained something to Jason. Jason just smiled fondly at her and ruffled her ginger hair every now and again.

"Philly came and told me that lunch was ready and Marshall called the shop so Leo would send our daughters back home", explained Jason amused, grasping Percy's shirt by the collar.

Percy hummed softly as he was pulled down into a tender kiss before he took his place at the table. Lunch was mostly just sandwiches or something else simple, but it was important to Percy that the family sat together to eat. Even though they weren't complete, Percy knew it was important. If they'd start to think that hey, some of the kids were at school, Jason was out in the field and Nico was at work, so why shouldn't he laze about while the other kids ate in front of the telly? They'd fall apart like that. No, regardless of how few members of their family were here, those at home would sit together for whatever meal they were having. Even if it were just Percy and Nico drinking coffee in the morning before Percy headed out to the fields and Nico headed out to New York. It was essential, sitting together and talking about their plans for the day or in the evenings how their days had went. It was an important bonding-moment, had been especially so when they had first taken their kids in. It was how they got to know each other better. Now it was to tighten their bond as a family, to ensure their children were happy and content and well cared for.

"We'll have tomato salad tonight", informed Percy his lover.

"I don't think that will be enough", mused Jason amused. "Considering that we'll have a guest."

"We will?", asked Joe curiously, eyes sparkling. "Will uncle Leo come?"

"Uncle Leo can't come over every day", grunted Jason and rolled his eyes. "Uncle Frank and auntie Hazel want to have him for themselves sometimes too. And don't forget your cousin Nico."

"Like when you send _us_ to eat at auntie Hazel's so you can have _our_ daddy all to yourselves?", inquired Derek sharply, glaring at Jason as he scooted more forward on his seat.

Jason blushed a little and averted his eyes. That boy was unnerving. And he was ridiculously possessive of Percy. Then again, out of their little threesome, Percy was the one who spend most time with the children, who had always been the best with them.

"Is okay. Dads need to spend time alone without children too", chided Trend in his knows-it-all-voice as he looked at Derek. "Especially when they have to deal with the likes of _you_."

And they were at it again. Derek and Trend always fought. It had been a cause for concern at first, but Jason deemed it a healthy rivalry. And most of the time they were fighting for Sam's attention, which was also what always managed to dissolve the fight. Just like now.

"I think we all can be a handful and it's okay if dad and papà wanna have daddy for themselves sometimes", threw Sam in, voice small as he looked at Derek and Trend with large eyes. "Right?"

"Of course you're right, my sweetheart!", cooed Derek and threw his arms around Sam's shoulders.

He and Sara were the only ones who dared to ambush Sam with physical contact and albeit Sam occasionally still flinched, he never backed away from them, always accepted it. Percy smiled.

/break\

Nico was leaning back, eyes closed, one arm dangling out of the car window, the other leisurely holding a cigar. Percy didn't allow him to smoke on the farm because it'd be a bad influence for the children, so he used the drive back home to enjoy that one sin he allowed himself.

"I'd really like for you to _not_ do that", grunted his driver between coughs.

Nico cracked one eye open and glared at the brunette teen. "Too bad you don't get a say in this. This is my car and my cigar and I smoke it when I damn please it."

"I'll just tell big brother", muttered the brunette and stuck his tongue out.

Nico glared harder. Damn Tyson for knowing his weakness. His glare softened a little when he looked at Tyson. The boy had changed so much in the past ten years. He was tall and lanky, rather muscular – but then again, he was the quarterback of Homer High's football-team. His shaggy, brown hair was nearly as messy as Percy's and his hazel eyes still sparkled with the same kind of unbound curiosity and joy as they had when he was seven. Nico wasn't the only member of their family who was immensely proud of Tyson. He may not be top of his classes, but he was a good enough student, he was a celebrated jock and he had made a lot of friends at school.

"You're a cheap shot, Ty", muttered Nico and put the cigar down in the ash tray.

"Not my fault you're so whipped", chimed Ty with a large grin.

They pulled up in front of the farm and as always, Nico couldn't fight the fond smile off as he saw the repainted _Linwood Farm_ sign. Neither Nico nor Jason had ever asked Percy to change the name, they knew how much it meant to Percy to honor his mother and grandparents, because it was their farm. There were seven sets of colorful hand-prints around the letters, one from each of theirs.

"What's for dinner today, fratellone?", asked Tyson hopefully, looking at Nico.

"How should I know?", huffed Nico as they parked the car. "I was at work all day."

"Aw, you always get such a cute pouty expression when you talk about not having spend hours with Percy and Jason", teased Tyson with a large grin. "Whatever it is, it'll be delicious anyway."

They got out of the car and Nico stretched to work out the kinks in his back. Approaching the house, Nico fingered his keys out of his pocket to unlock. Though Jason was faster than him. Sometimes, Nico felt as though his silly blonde was waiting at the windows for him to get home. Offering him a beaming smile, Jason took Nico's jacket and placed a kiss in his cheek.

"Welcome home, honey", grinned Jason delighted, earning a shove to the ribs.

"Don't call me honey, dick", muttered Nico irritated, kissing Jason on the corner of his mouth.

"The love between you two is blinding", snorted Tyson amused.

"UNCLE TYSON!", was screamed so loudly, the house seemed to shake.

Within ten seconds, Tyson was flat on his ass, a pile of seven children on top of him, hugging him. He was _the_ favorite uncle. And he loved it. Laughing, he tried to hug them all at once.

"Glad to see you loving uncle Tyson so much", chided Nico with a frown. "I'm here too."

"You're uninteresting. We have you every day, papà", huffed Derek and glared at him.

"Yes. Go and kiss daddy", agreed Sara, making shushing notions. "Uncle Tyson! Uncle Tyson! Will you ride with me on Rainbow, please? I really wanna ride, but daddy says I'm too small alone!"

Nico snorted and rolled his eyes as he walked past his children and to the kitchen. What he found was pleasant enough. Percy, in his blue dolphin-apron, getting a casserole out of the stove. Smiling, he walked over to Percy and wrapped his arms around his lover's waist. Percy yelped and glared.

"Don't do that! I nearly dropped dinner!", hissed Percy, elbowing Nico hard.

"Why is it I don't get _any_ love today?", huffed Nico with a pout.

"I love you, Nick. Don't startle me when I handle food", sighed Percy and rolled his eyes.

He craned his neck and kissed Nico. Nico grinned pleased and went to sit down next to Jason. Moments later and the noise picked up again, meaning the kids were coming. They were still all talking animatedly to Tyson – and that was one thing Nico admired about Tyson, because the teen managed to follow them all while they talked a hundred miles a minute. Percy smiled fondly as he placed the food on the table and sat down himself, leaning over to kiss Tyson's cheek.

"Hey, little bro. I missed you", grinned Percy, ruffling Tyson's hair. "What brings you here?"

"I need the advise of my wise big brothers", admitted Tyson, red around his nose.

"Oh. Wise. That means it's important", deducted Jason with a teasing grin.

Tyson's face got even redder and Derek started giggling. "Uncle Tyson is in lo—ove!"

"No teasing", chided Sam with a frown. "I'm sure uncle Ty found a wonderful princess, right?!"

Tyson used to love playing prince and princess with his figures and it was something he passed on to the seven little ones. He often babysat them and played with them a lot. Sam especially was fond of playing with the little princes and princesses. Sam and Sara adored Tyson the most. Joe had her Leo, for Derek and Phyl it were Grover and Juniper, while Marshall and Trend practically lived for their Saturday lessons at auntie Reyna's dojo in New York (though for Trend it was also to talk to auntie Annabeth then, because she was the only one matching his intellect and some days, Percy feared that Annabeth would just up and keep Trend, really). As long as all of their children were happy and found love in their rather large and unorthodox family, Nico, Jason and Percy were happy. Percy smiled and petted Sam's hair like he was a kitten who just brought a mouse.

"Well, Ty?", inquired Percy, arching one eyebrow.

"So... uh... junior prom is coming up, right?", mumbled Tyson awkwardly, shifting around.

"Already, huh?", sighed Nico and shook his head. "To quote dad; man, I feel old..."

"Anyway", coughed Jason amused, eying Nico. "What's the deal, Ty?"

"I—I wanna ask... Ella to prom, but I dunno how", admitted Tyson, eyes downcast.

"Ella is awesome!", exclaimed Trend, eyes lighting up. "She's clever and knows all the books! You need to marry her, she's perfect for you! Then she'd be auntie Ella!"

And just like that, Tyson's face turned into a Christmas tree. It was quite adorable to watch. Percy smiled and leaned back, a thoughtful expression on his face. Ella and Tyson had been inseparable best friends since before Percy had known them and they still were. Ella had grown into a beautiful girl, looking a lot like her big sister Rachel, just with straight and darker hair, lighter eyes and less freckles. She was also taller than Rachel used to be back in the day. And she practically inhaled books, but still found time outside with hers and Tyson's friends.

"So... you haven't asked her yet, even though prom is like next week?", inquired Percy with a scolding look. "She's gonna pace around, thinking you won't ask at all."

"I kno—ow", whined Tyson, resting his head on the surface of the table with a 'thump'. "But how do I know that she'll say 'yes'? I mean... I mean if she doesn't like me _like that_ , then our whole friendship would be ruined! A—And I couldn't do that, I mean, she's my best friend!"

Percy tried very hard not to grin at the desperate tone of Ty's voice. "Jason, your turn."

The blonde groaned and blushed himself. He knew he was the most likely to be helpful here since he had been in exactly the same situation with Nico oh-so many years ago. He ran his fingers through his own hair, looking at Tyson with a thoughtful expression on his face.

"You'll never know if you don't try", offered Jason slowly. "I know it's very risky and all, but you will never know if she feels like you do if you don't tell her how you feel."

"Yeah, okay, I guess, maybe", mumbled Tyson, looking frustrated. "But... _how_?"

"Flowers", piped Phyl in, looking at her uncle Tyson shyly. "Ella likes roses."

"That's a good idea, Philly", praised Percy with a fond smile. "Roses and a tux and then just _ask_. It's really that simple. You don't have to make things more complicated than they are, Ty."

"But it has to be complicated", chided Derek with a frown. "Like in rom-coms!"

"Der's right!", agreed Joe, mimicking his frown. "With running after each other and misunderstandings and apologies and only then they live happily-ever-after!"

"No more movie nights with uncle Will", grunted Nico with a deadpanned expression.

Derek made a pouty sound and glared at his papà. Not that that bothered the Italian. He just smirked at his brunette son. The rest of their family dinner was far more civil and mostly small talk about what the kids had been up to all day and how everyone in New York was doing. Afterward, Tyson all too soon left again, because he wanted to be home before midnight.

"So, what are _we_ doing tonight?", inquired Percy as they all waved Tyson goodbye.

"The same as every night, daddy!", declared Derek and jumped up, clinging to his neck.

Percy grunted and wrapped his arms around the brunette, carrying him inside again. The rest of their family followed them, Sam and Trend flanking Percy on either side, while Nico held onto Marshall's and Phyl's hands and Jason held the hands of Sara and Joe.

"We are _not_ planning how to conquer the world", deadpanned Nico.

"But Derek said if he becomes king of the world, I'd be a princess", whispered Phyl upset.

"Honey, you're _always_ a princess to us", smiled Jason kindly.

"Can we have family cuddles?", inquired Joe, staring up at the blonde with large eyes.

"That, on the other hand, is the perfect plan", praised Nico amused, petting her head.

Joe and Sara grinned and high-fived as the family headed upstairs to their parents' bedroom. The threesome had a giant bed, so all three of them had enough space. It proved to be very practical now that they had seven kids, who loved Sunday-morning-cuddles. It took a few minutes to adjust everyone on the bed, with Percy in the middle, Jason left and Nico right. Sam was curled together on Percy's chest, Derek, Phyl and Sara between Percy and Jason, while Trend, Marshall and Joe were between Percy and Nico. A large smile was spreading over Percy's lips as he had his arms laying around Sammy, caressing the boy's curls softly. He loved their little family dearly.

"When uncle Ty marries Ella, then Ella will be our auntie, right?", inquired Phyl curiously.

"You need to slow it down, kids", chuckled Nico amused. "Ty hasn't even asked Ella for a date yet."

"Yeah. They need to date first and then they can get married. It's not a Disney-movie", agreed Sam with a very serious expression on his face. "And _then_ they can live happily ever after and she'll be our auntie. Daddy, dad and papà were on prom together too, right?"

"Going to prom together doesn't guarantee marriage", pointed Jason out with a grin.

Derek gasped loudly and stared at him scandalized. "I object! It's like the American fairy tale! Of course going to prom means getting married and living happily ever after! Right, daddy?"

Percy smiled and kissed Derek's forehead. "Of course it does, sweetling."

Derek hummed pleased and snuggled up to Percy, while his siblings around them snickered. They knew Derek very firmly believed in fairy tales, all kinds of fairy tales. Yawning widely, Percy rested his head on Nico's chest and closed his eyes. Today had been exhausting, like most weekdays, but when they laid together like that, curled into one ball of limbs and people, it was all worth it.

"Can we visit grandpas next weekend?", asked Marshall softly.

"Yeah, spending the weekend in the city for a change sounds good", agreed Jason with a grin.

It was hard to deny the boy who so rarely asked for anything. Percy smiled and nodded, while Nico heaved a sigh. Visiting their fathers was always a bit exhausting, not that it wasn't worth it. It was good to see Hades and Poseidon, to play with Zerberus and Mrs. O'Leary again and see how the old neighborhood was doing. Nico returned Percy's smile and nodded slowly, causing Percy to beam. Jason leaned over to kiss both of them. This was their happily ever after, like Derek always praised.

_~*~ The End ~*~_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it. Everything came to a beautifully fluffy end, everyone is happy and moved on with their lives. The story's over. I hope you had as much fun as I did. Thank you all for reading and even more so for reviewing, because it makes me really happy to know if you enjoyed it and what you enjoyed. ;)


End file.
